Muscat – Recent rainfall channeled 18.832mn cubic metres (mnm³) of water into various dams in Oman during the last week of April, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resource (MAFWR) said on Wednesday.

Rainfall during the eight days from April 22 to 29 resulted in the rise of water in dams up to 83.312mnm³ of the total capacity of 130.872mnm³.

According to a statement by the ministry, the Wadi Dayqah Dam in the wilayat of Qurayat in Muscat gathered the highest volume of water during the period. An addition of 8.9mnm³ of water in the dam raised its reserve to 69.13mnm³ – almost 70 per cent of its total storage capacity.

About 4.14mnm³ of water got into the Sur Protection Dam in South Sharqiyah, 1.7mnm³ in different dams in Amerat, 1.3mnm³ in dams in Al Qabel in North Sharqiyah and 1.2mnm³ in dams in Dakhaliyah.

According to MAFWR, Oman faces a shortfall of 316mnm³ of water every year. The annual contribution of renewable water from various sources is estimated at about 1,318mnm³ and the pressure on these sources has been increasing, especially for the demand in the agriculture sector that consumes almost 83 per cent of the annual water needs of the country.