The PSIPW Prize Council held the 1st meeting for its 5th Award on Sunday 13 March 2011 in Amman, Jordan.

The inaugural meeting for the 5th Award (2012) was attended by His Majesty, King Abdullah II of Jordan and headed by PSIPW Council Chairman HRH Prince Khaled Bin Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz.

In his address, Prince Khaled Bin Sultan stressed the need to prevent future water crises, noting that the main reason for future wars will be contention over precious water resources and not oil, geographic expansion or political power.

 “We are heading towards water tragedies in the absence of action by international entities,” which calls for drawing up firm legislation to fight “water piracy”, he said.

The Prince, who is also Saudi Arabia’s Assistant Minister of Defence and Aviation and Inspector General for Military Affairs, warned against the lack of awareness on the importance of water. he also warned against the continual problem of poor distribution methods, stressing the need for knowledge on water management.

Encouraging scientists to compete for the prize, PSIPW Secretary General Abdulmalek A. Al Alsheikh said scientists and researchers from across the world are eligible for the Prize.

The five prizes for the 5th Award – for which nominations will be opening on 1 May 2011 – were announced:

First, there is the Creativity Prize. Then there are four Specialized Prizes: the Surface Water Prize, the Groundwater Prize, the Alternative Water Resources Prize, the Water Management & Protection Prize.

All topics that are relevant to these four Specialized Prizes are eligible for nomination.