Annual freshwater withdrawals in Iraq
Iraq: Annual freshwater withdrawals was 42.42 billion billion cubic meters in 2022. ▲ Rising
Latest (2022)
42.42 billion billion cubic meters
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
17th
of 181 countries
All-time high
65.99 billion billion cubic meters
in 2000
All-time low
33.56 billion billion cubic meters
in 2018
Years of data
48
1975–2022
Annual freshwater withdrawals in Iraq, 1975–2022
Source: AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, FAO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in billion cubic meters.
Analysis
The most recent figure for annual freshwater withdrawals in Iraq is 42.42 billion billion cubic meters, measured in 2022.
That represents a change of down 2.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual freshwater withdrawals in Iraq peaked at 65.99 billion billion cubic meters in 2000 and was at its lowest, 33.56 billion billion cubic meters, in 2018.
Iraq ranks 17th of 181 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 48 years of available data.
Annual freshwater withdrawals in Iraq, year by year
| Year | billion cubic meters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 40.56 billion billion cubic meters | — |
| 1976 | 40.61 billion billion cubic meters | +0.1% |
| 1977 | 40.65 billion billion cubic meters | +0.1% |
| 1978 | 40.70 billion billion cubic meters | +0.1% |
| 1979 | 40.75 billion billion cubic meters | +0.1% |
| 1980 | 40.80 billion billion cubic meters | +0.1% |
| 1981 | 40.84 billion billion cubic meters | +0.1% |
| 1982 | 40.88 billion billion cubic meters | +0.1% |
| 1983 | 40.93 billion billion cubic meters | +0.1% |
| 1984 | 40.98 billion billion cubic meters | +0.1% |
| 1985 | 41.02 billion billion cubic meters | +0.1% |
| 1986 | 41.38 billion billion cubic meters | +0.9% |
| 1987 | 41.73 billion billion cubic meters | +0.9% |
| 1988 | 42.09 billion billion cubic meters | +0.9% |
| 1989 | 42.44 billion billion cubic meters | +0.8% |
| 1990 | 42.80 billion billion cubic meters | +0.8% |
| 1991 | 45.12 billion billion cubic meters | +5.4% |
| 1992 | 47.44 billion billion cubic meters | +5.1% |
| 1993 | 49.76 billion billion cubic meters | +4.9% |
| 1994 | 52.08 billion billion cubic meters | +4.7% |
| 1995 | 54.40 billion billion cubic meters | +4.5% |
| 1996 | 56.72 billion billion cubic meters | +4.3% |
| 1997 | 59.03 billion billion cubic meters | +4.1% |
| 1998 | 61.35 billion billion cubic meters | +3.9% |
| 1999 | 63.67 billion billion cubic meters | +3.8% |
| 2000 | 65.99 billion billion cubic meters | +3.6% |
| 2001 | 64.14 billion billion cubic meters | -2.8% |
| 2002 | 62.28 billion billion cubic meters | -2.9% |
| 2003 | 60.42 billion billion cubic meters | -3.0% |
| 2004 | 58.56 billion billion cubic meters | -3.1% |
| 2005 | 56.71 billion billion cubic meters | -3.2% |
| 2006 | 54.85 billion billion cubic meters | -3.3% |
| 2007 | 52.99 billion billion cubic meters | -3.4% |
| 2008 | 51.13 billion billion cubic meters | -3.5% |
| 2009 | 49.28 billion billion cubic meters | -3.6% |
| 2010 | 47.42 billion billion cubic meters | -3.8% |
| 2011 | 45.56 billion billion cubic meters | -3.9% |
| 2012 | 43.70 billion billion cubic meters | -4.1% |
| 2013 | 41.84 billion billion cubic meters | -4.3% |
| 2014 | 39.98 billion billion cubic meters | -4.4% |
| 2015 | 34.90 billion billion cubic meters | -12.7% |
| 2016 | 38.51 billion billion cubic meters | +10.3% |
| 2017 | 43.06 billion billion cubic meters | +11.8% |
| 2018 | 33.56 billion billion cubic meters | -22.1% |
| 2019 | 56.62 billion billion cubic meters | +68.7% |
| 2020 | 45.04 billion billion cubic meters | -20.4% |
| 2021 | 42.42 billion billion cubic meters | -5.8% |
| 2022 | 42.42 billion billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
Iraq compared with similar countries
- Iraq's 42.42 billion billion cubic meters is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 3.32 billion billion cubic meters, 12.8× the median. (53 countries reporting)
- Iraq's 42.42 billion billion cubic meters is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 3.56 billion billion cubic meters, 11.9× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Annual freshwater withdrawals in Iraq changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | +68.7% | 33.56 billion billion cubic meters | 56.62 billion billion cubic meters |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 40.65 billion billion cubic meters | 40.56 billion billion cubic meters | 40.75 billion billion cubic meters | 5 |
| 1980s | 41.31 billion billion cubic meters | 40.80 billion billion cubic meters | 42.44 billion billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 1990s | 53.24 billion billion cubic meters | 42.80 billion billion cubic meters | 63.67 billion billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2000s | 57.63 billion billion cubic meters | 49.28 billion billion cubic meters | 65.99 billion billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2010s | 42.52 billion billion cubic meters | 33.56 billion billion cubic meters | 56.62 billion billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2020s | 43.30 billion billion cubic meters | 42.42 billion billion cubic meters | 45.04 billion billion cubic meters | 3 |
Countries ranked near Iraq
- 14 Turkey 64.47 billion billion cubic meters compare
- 15 Thailand 57.31 billion billion cubic meters compare
- 16 Uzbekistan 42.90 billion billion cubic meters compare
- 18 Argentina 37.69 billion billion cubic meters compare
- 19 Canada 36.13 billion billion cubic meters compare
- 20 Bangladesh 35.87 billion billion cubic meters compare
More environment data for Iraq
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -38.03 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -26.27 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.549 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.99 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 6.65 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual freshwater withdrawals in Iraq?
- Annual freshwater withdrawals in Iraq was 42.42 billion billion cubic meters in 2022, according to AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, FAO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual freshwater withdrawals recorded in Iraq?
- The highest recorded value was 65.99 billion billion cubic meters in 2000.
- What is the lowest annual freshwater withdrawals recorded in Iraq?
- The lowest recorded value was 33.56 billion billion cubic meters in 2018.
- How does Iraq rank for annual freshwater withdrawals?
- Iraq ranks 17th out of 181 countries with data for 2022.
- Is annual freshwater withdrawals rising or falling in Iraq?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iraq data come from?
- The figures come from AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, FAO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual freshwater withdrawals. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 48 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Annual freshwater withdrawals refer to total water withdrawals, not counting evaporation losses from storage basins, measured in cubic meters (m³) per year. Total water withdrawals are the sum of withdrawals for agriculture, industry and municipal (domestic uses). Withdrawals also include water from desalination plants in countries where they are a significant source.