00:06At this coffee shop in Tunis, even a brief water cut can bring business to a standstill.
00:12Managers say repeated disruptions are becoming increasingly difficult to cope with.
00:18Water is a strategic necessity for this coffee shop and many other business activities.
00:23Whenever the supply is cut off, we face serious difficulties. As operations come to a complete halt, we can no
00:32longer function or carry out our work.
00:36The pressure intensifies during the summer months when soaring temperatures cause hundreds of thousands of cubic meters of stored water
00:45to evaporate every day.
00:49In summer, the main problem is evaporation. Daily water losses average between 600,000 and 670,000 cubic meters, rising
00:58to one million cubic meters at peak times.
01:01Some dams that previously supplied both agriculture and drinking water now allocate nearly 90 percent of their reserves to drinking
01:07water. As a result, farmers have been severely affected.
01:12With conventional reserves under strain, experts say the North African country must accelerate investment in alternative water sources.
01:23The first step in reducing water stress is to turn to non-conventional water resources.
01:28These fall into two main categories, desalination of seawater or brackish water and the reuse of treated wastewater.
01:37But these solutions bring their own challenges. High energy costs are making seawater desalination increasingly expensive, while recurring electricity cuts
01:48are disrupting distribution by forcing pumping stations out of operation.
01:54Power cuts and water shortages worsened by extreme heat are making life harder across Tunisia.
01:59Authorities have defended their response, saying limited resources have forced them to delay investment in infrastructure projects that might help
02:09curb the problem.
02:10Let's take the same time.
02:10Now, the other question is, is the question, is the question?
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