Middle East & Africa Water Desalination Market Outlook, 2029

The Middle East and Africa region, with dry temperatures and limited freshwater supplies, has been at the forefront of implementing water desalination as a strategic option to fulfill the growing need for clean and potable water. This wide and diverse region, which includes countries with varying economic landscapes and water concerns, has seen significant developments and investments in desalination technology. The Middle East, notably the Arabian Gulf countries, has been a global leader in water desalination, motivated by the urgent need to secure freshwater resources in the face of arid climates and rising urbanization. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, and Qatar are among the countries leading large-scale desalination projects.

In Africa, where water scarcity is also a major concern, countries like Algeria, Tunisia, and South Africa are increasingly exploring desalination to augment their water supply. The Middle East & Africa region collectively stands as a dynamic hub for water desalination projects, showcasing a blend of economic, technological, and environmental considerations. The Middle East and Africa water desalination industry has seen a spike in technological innovations targeted at increasing efficiency, lowering energy consumption, and reducing environmental effects. Reverse osmosis (RO), a commonly used desalination method, has undergone ongoing developments in membrane technology, resulting in higher desalination rates and lower energy consumption.

Furthermore, technologies such as forward osmosis, solar desalination, and zero-liquid discharge are gaining traction, providing more sustainable alternatives and resolving long-term environmental issues. Economic success and water security are inextricably linked in the Middle East & Africa region. Many Middle Eastern countries, fueled by oil revenue, have made significant investments in desalination infrastructure to diversify their water supplies and provide resilience in the case of water scarcity. In Africa, where economic expansion is frequently associated with agricultural productivity, desalination projects play a pivotal role in providing water for irrigation and supporting sustainable agricultural practices. The water desalination market in the Middle East & Africa region is thus intricately linked to broader economic development goals and strategies for enhancing food security.

According to the research report 'Middle East & Africa Water Desalination Market Outlook, 2029', the Middle East & Africa Water Desalination market is expected to reach market size of more than USD 17 Billion by 2029. Saudi Arabia, a desert country with limited freshwater reserves, has emerged as a desalination superpower. The country produces a large share of the world's desalinated water and has made significant investments in cutting-edge desalination technology. The United Arab Emirates, particularly Dubai and Abu Dhabi, are known for their devotion to water desalination innovation.

The region has undertaken initiatives such as the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, which incorporates renewable energy into desalination operations, a big step toward sustainability. Middle Eastern and African countries actively participate in worldwide cooperation and knowledge-sharing projects, including water desalination. Their experience and breakthroughs in desalination technologies are shared with other places suffering similar water difficulties, helping to improve worldwide efforts for sustainable water solutions. Israel, a pioneer in water management, has been at the forefront of using desalination to address water scarcity.

The country is a global leader in water recycling and has successfully developed large-scale desalination projects, which have significantly improved its water security. Rapid population development and urbanization in the Middle East and Africa put tremendous strain on available water resources. Desalination is an important instrument for addressing rising water demand in cities, maintaining citizen’s access to safe drinking water, and boosting economic activity. The Middle East and Africa area is rapidly investing in research and development for better desalination technologies. This includes researching new materials, increasing desalination efficiency, and addressing environmental concerns in order to provide more sustainable solutions for water-stressed places.

Major Drivers

Water scarcity and population growth:: Water scarcity is a primary driver for the water desalination market in the Middle East & Africa. Rapid population growth, urbanization, and agricultural demands have strained traditional freshwater sources, leading to an urgent need for alternative water supply solutions. As these regions face arid climates and limited access to freshwater, desalination becomes a critical tool to meet the rising demand for clean and potable water. The continuous increase in population exacerbates the pressure on existing water resources, making desalination a strategic and essential investment for ensuring water security in the face of growing demographic challenges.

Economic prosperity and infrastructure development: Economic prosperity, fueled primarily by oil wealth in Gulf countries, is a primary driver of the Middle Eastern water desalination industry. These countries have made significant investments in desalination infrastructure as part of larger economic diversification strategies. Oil export money is invested in large-scale infrastructure projects, such as desalination facilities, to boost economic growth and minimize reliance on hydrocarbon profits. These countries' economic prosperity serves as a catalyst for large-scale desalination operations, providing a sustainable water supply for home and industrial use.

Major Challenges

Environmental impact and brine disposal: The environmental impact of desalination, particularly the discharge of concentrated brine into marine habitats, is a major issue across the Middle East and Africa. The saline flow, which has high salinity and chemical residues, can harm marine life and disturb coastal ecosystems. The Arabian Gulf, in particular, is susceptible to the cumulative impacts of brine discharge. To address this issue, responsible brine disposal solutions like dilution schemes, offshore diffusers, and creative ways that reduce the environmental impact of desalination facilities must be developed and implemented.

Limited freshwater storage infrastructure: The Middle East and Africa region frequently encounters issues with freshwater storage infrastructure, limiting the effectiveness of desalination plants. In some circumstances, despite successful desalination operations, insufficient storage facilities impede the ability to store and distribute desalinated water properly. To address this difficulty, coordinated efforts must be made to invest in water storage infrastructure, such as reservoirs and distribution networks, in order to assure a steady supply of desalinated water to urban and agricultural areas.

Based on technology segment market is divided into reverse osmosis, multi-stage flash (MSF) distillation, multi-effect distillation (MED) and others. Multi-stage flash (MSF) technology is commonly preferred for water desalination in Middle East & Africa.

MSF desalination is noted for its excellent energy efficiency, which is especially significant in hot climates such as the Middle East and Africa. The technique uses heat from numerous stages to evaporate water, reducing the amount of energy required to separate saltwater and freshwater. This efficiency is critical in applications where energy prices and availability are important issues. The MSF process is naturally tolerant of high salinity levels in the feedwater, making it ideal for desalting very saline water sources like seawater.

This is critical for the Middle East and Africa, since many coastal areas rely on desalination to meet their freshwater needs, and seawater is the primary supply. MSF desalination plants can simply scale up to meet the increased water demands of expanding populations. The modular design of MSF units allows for flexibility in capacity, making them adaptable to the changing needs of rapidly growing urban areas in the Middle East and Africa. MSF technology has a lengthy and successful track record in the desalination business.

Many of the early desalination projects in the Middle East used MSF technology, and its stability and performance over time have led to its continued popularity in the region. The MSF process uses simple and sturdy components, making it ideal for the harsh environmental conditions found in the Middle East and Africa. The design is less prone to fouling and scaling problems, ensuring dependable operation even in harsh settings. The MSF technique can produce high-quality freshwater with low quantities of pollutants. This is required to meet the region's rigorous water quality standards for drinking water and industrial use.

Based on source segment market is segmented into sea water, brackish water, surface water (rivers & streams), wastewater and others. Sea water segment is expected to lead the Middle East & Africa water desalination market. Based on application segment market is divided into municipal, industrial and others.

The Middle East and Africa are distinguished by long coastlines along large bodies of water such as the Arabian Gulf, Red Sea, and Indian Ocean. The abundance of seawater resources makes seawater desalination a realistic and easily available solution to the region's freshwater needs. Many Middle Eastern and African countries confront issues due to limited freshwater resources, with arid and semi-arid climates prevalent in many areas. Seawater desalination becomes an important option for supplementing traditional freshwater sources, which may be insufficient to fulfill rising water demand. The Middle East and Africa are witnessing rapid population growth and urbanization.

The need for freshwater rises as cities grows in size and population. Seawater desalination is a sustainable and scalable solution that ensures a consistent water supply for growing urban areas. As freshwater sources grow increasingly challenged, companies in the Middle East and Africa are turning to desalination as a consistent and sustainable source of water. Desalination plants, particularly those focused on seawater desalination, play a critical role in providing industrial enterprises with the water they require to operate.

Desalination provides enterprises with a way to handle seasonal and climate-related fluctuations in freshwater availability. During droughts or seasons of low rainfall, desalinated water provides a consistent and continuous supply, allowing industrial processes to function uninterrupted. Mega-industrial projects, such as those in petrochemicals, metals, mining, and infrastructure construction, frequently require large amounts of water. Desalination units are deliberately integrated into these projects to address the specific water demands associated with their scale and complexity.

Based on the report the market includes three major countries United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and South Africa. Saudi Arabia is expected to lead the Middle East & Africa water desalination market during the forecast period.

In Saudi Arabia's arid surroundings, the search for sustainable water resources has led to the creation of a thriving water desalination industry. With vast desert areas and limited freshwater supplies, the Kingdom has emerged as a global pioneer in the use of desalination technologies to meet its increasing demand for clean water. The Saudi water desalination sector has grown swiftly and innovated, helping to alleviate the country's water constraints. Saudi Arabia has made significant investments in desalination infrastructure over the years, as well as implemented cutting-edge technology to increase the process's efficiency and sustainability.

Two of the most prevalent desalination technologies are reverse osmosis (RO) and multi-effect distillation (MED), each of which has distinct advantages. Saudi Arabia presently leads the world in desalination water production and consumption. This thriving sector consists of 31 desalination units spread across 17 locales. Furthermore, the National Water Company (NWC), a Saudi joint stock firm completely controlled by the Public Investment Fund, has invested nearly USD 6.7 billion in over 300 water projects in Makkah, Riyadh, Taif, and Jeddah over the last decade, with billions more planned for the next five years.

Saudi Arabia has undergone a significant transformation from traditional desalination processes to modern technologies, particularly reverse osmosis (RO). This technology, which is known for its energy efficiency and low environmental impact, has become an important part of the country's efforts to improve the sustainability of its water desalination processes.

The competitive landscape of the worldwide water desalination market is defined by the existence of prominent industry players who are actively engaged in technological breakthroughs, strategic alliances, and geographic growth. Companies are constantly investing in R&D to improve desalination methods and increase energy efficiency. The market also sees significant participation from regional firms, particularly in the Middle East, where water shortages are serious.

Furthermore, public-private partnerships and government initiatives play an important role in creating competitive dynamics as several countries seek to address water security concerns through desalination plants. The pursuit of sustainable practices, cost-effective solutions, and developments in membrane technology are all important elements affecting competitiveness as companies compete for a substantial portion of the growing global water desalination industry.

Considered in this report

• Historic year: 2018
• Base year: 2023
• Estimated year: 2024
• Forecast year: 2029

Aspects covered in this report

• Water Desalination market Outlook with its value and forecast along with its segments
• Various drivers and challenges
• On-going trends and developments
• Top profiled companies
• Strategic recommendation

By Technology

• Reverse Osmosis (RO)
• Multi-Stage Flash (MSF) Distillation
• Multi-Effect Distillation (MED)
• Others

By Source

• Sea Water
• Brackish Water
• Surface Water (Rivers & Streams)
• Wastewater
• Others (Industrial Process Water, Produced Water, Agricultural Runoff, Mining Effluents, Highly Saline Springs or Wells, Landfill Leachate, Tailings Pond Water)

By Application

• Municipal
• Industrial
• Others

The approach of the report:

This report consists of a combined approach of primary and secondary research. Initially, secondary research was used to get an understanding of the market and list the companies that are present in it. The secondary research consists of third-party sources such as press releases, annual reports of companies, and government-generated reports and databases. After gathering the data from secondary sources, primary research was conducted by conducting telephone interviews with the leading players about how the market is functioning and then conducting trade calls with dealers and distributors of the market. Post this; we have started making primary calls to consumers by equally segmenting them in regional aspects, tier aspects, age group, and gender. Once we have primary data with us, we can start verifying the details obtained from secondary sources.

Intended audience

This report can be useful to industry consultants, manufacturers, suppliers, associations, and organizations related to the Water Desalination industry, government bodies, and other stakeholders to align their market-centric strategies. In addition to marketing and presentations, it will also increase competitive knowledge about the industry.


This product will be delivered within 2 business days.