The table compares the percentages of water used for domestic, agricultural and industrial purposes in six Gulf countries in 2000.
Overall, agriculture accounted for the largest proportion of water consumption in most countries, especially Saudi Arabia and Oman, while industrial use represented the smallest share across all six nations. In contrast, Kuwait and Bahrain recorded the highest figures for domestic water use.
Looking at domestic consumption, Kuwait recorded the highest percentage at 63%, followed by Bahrain at 53%. The figures for the UAE and Qatar stood at 35% and 30% respectively, whereas Saudi Arabia and Oman used much smaller proportions of water for domestic purposes, at 13% and 11%.
Regarding agriculture, Saudi Arabia had the highest percentage of water use at 85%, followed by Oman at 83%. The UAE and Qatar also recorded high figures, standing at 63% and 62% respectively. By comparison, Bahrain and Kuwait used considerably lower proportions of water for agriculture, at 39% and 19%.
Industrial purposes accounted for the smallest share of water use in all countries. Kuwait recorded the highest industrial figure at 18%, while Bahrain stood at 8%. The remaining countries all used less than 10% of their water for industrial activities.