Algeria dams filled up to 81%

The fill rate of the Algerian dams is estimated currently at over 81%, the equivalent of 5.5 billion cubic meters, Minister of Water Resources, Hocine Necib said Thursday in Algiers on the sidelines of a ceremony on nomination of two students as an Algerian water ambassadors at the first World Young Water Ambassadors Assembly scheduled from 27 to 29 May in Istanbul. These reserves provide "a sufficient amount to ensure good supply of the population with drinking water," he added, stressing the "significant contribution" of the groundwater level, particularly in the coast area. According to the minister, "the entire network of seawater desalination plants" will be exploited in the summer, ensuring that industry managers have taken steps to ensure "a permanent service, notably in the areas with shortage problem." Concerning the South, the minister said that "important measures" have been taken to improve the situation in some provinces facing drought, like Bechar.