Tunisians are forced by the government to restrict water due to the severe drought

 

For six months, Tunisia has had a meagre trickle, drip, drip from the faucets every evening. The majority of the nation, including Tunis, the capital city, is subject to a state-ordered water rationing where spigots are shut off for seven hours between 9 p.m. and 4 a.m.

With the government suddenly ordering its citizens to restrict their water consumption from April to September — or suffer fines or jail time — Tunisians are on the front lines of a war against an increasingly severe drought, now in its fifth year in the north African nation.

To bathe, use the bathroom and cook food late at night, households now require a supply of bottled water. Additionally, authorities have made it illegal to irrigate farms, water urban green spaces, and wash vehicles and streets using drinkable water.

Nearly all of Tunisia's more than 30 dams have experienced a sharp decline in water levels, with some reaching as little as 17% of their storage capacity.

Water for agriculture and tap water are both provided by the Sidi Salem dam in northwest Tunisia, which also supplies water to places like Sfax along the Tunisian Sahel. But according to the publication La Presse, which cited Faycel Khemiri, the No. 2 official for dams and hydraulic works at the Agricultural Ministry, the amount of water held there is at its lowest level since it was built in 1981.