The right to development begins with people, dignity and water

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By Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid

While geopolitical crises and security debates dominate international headlines, another catastrophe has been unfolding in the "cradle of civilization." Across Iraq, water scarcity, climate change and environmental degradation are transforming landscapes that sustained some of humanity's oldest civilizations.

Iraq's rivers occupy a unique place in both human history and religious tradition. The historical town of Qurna, at the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates, is claimed by many to be the site of the biblical Garden of Eden. Ur is the birthplace of Prophet Ibrahim, who is perhaps one of the earliest recorded climate refugees. According to recorded history, large-scale irrigated agriculture was pioneered by the Sumerians in Mesopotamia, the historical region within the Tigris–Euphrates river system.

Today, the decrease in the flows of the Tigris and Euphrates has affected agriculture and water management, as well as the lives of communities whose identities are inseparable from these rivers. Among the hardest hit are the Mandaeans, a Gnostic religious community whose faith requires them to live near and perform rituals in flowing rivers. The drying up of Iraq's marshlands is a human rights crisis because it shows how environmental degradation can imperil the preservation of a global heritage, human dignity and of the right to development.

Forty years ago, the United Nations adopted the Declaration on the Right to Development, affirming that development is not a privilege reserved for a few nations or communities but an inalienable right of every person and every people. Yet four decades later, the reality confronting millions around the world demonstrates how far we are from fulfilling that promise.

As an engineer who has devoted much of his professional life to water resources, irrigation and the restoration of Iraq's southern marshlands, I have learned that development cannot be measured by economic statistics alone. Its true measure lies in its impact on everyday life. It is reflected in a child's access to clean drinking water, a patient's ability to receive medical care, a farmer's capacity to cultivate productive land, and a community's opportunity to rebuild after years of deprivation and conflict.

I recently had the opportunity to highlight many of these challenges as a keynote speaker at the 2026 Forum on Global Human Rights Governance in Beijing in June, where I argued that the right to development must remain central to the international human rights agenda and that countries such as Iraq require practical partnerships to address the intertwined challenges of water scarcity, climate change, technological transformation and post-conflict recovery.

In Iraq, decades of conflict, sanctions and instability damaged the foundations upon which development depends and imposed immense costs on reconstruction. More recently, climate change and water scarcity have imposed new impediments on the difficult path of recovery.

The southern marshlands provide one of the clearest illustrations of how environmental destruction can become a violation of human rights. Among the largest wetland ecosystems in West Asia and home to a distinct culture stretching back thousands of years, Iraq's marshlands were deliberately drained by Saddam Hussein's regime that ruled Iraq from 1979 until early 2003 when the region became a center of anti-government resistance.

Water, which should have sustained life and prosperity, was weaponized as an instrument of political repression, resulting in the displacement of communities and what can only be described as an act of ecocide.

Following 2003, Iraq undertook an ambitious effort to restore the marshlands and return to its people the right to live according to their identity, culture and connection to the land. Despite these attempts, Saddam's actions left a legacy that made it easier for saltwater intrusion. The basins of dried-up wetlands have become sources of increasingly severe dust storms.

The right to development means bringing water back to parched lands, reviving villages and enabling people to reclaim their homes, livelihoods and future. Achieving these goals, however, is a long and arduous process that requires political stability, economic resources and close regional cooperation, particularly in the management of shared water resources in an era of accelerating climate change.

A farmer carries tomatoes in a field north of Baghdad, Iraq, July 17, 2026. [Photo/Xinhua]

Turkey's decision earlier this year to increase water releases into the Tigris and Euphrates provided much needed relief after months of severe drought in Iraq. Yet such measures remain largely ad hoc. Despite their shared dependence on these river systems, Iraq, Turkey and Syria still lack a comprehensive, legally binding framework governing the equitable management of transboundary water resources. Long term water security requires durable regional agreements.

The same lesson applies to healthcare. A generation ago, Iraq possessed one of the most advanced healthcare systems in the region. Years of war, sanctions and the emigration of skilled professionals severely weakened that foundation. Rebuilding hospitals, training medical personnel and restoring preventive healthcare became central challenges after 2003. Through this experience, we learned that the right to health and the right to development are inseparable. There can be no genuine development in a society unable to protect the health of its citizens, and no healthcare system can flourish without stability, investment and opportunity.

As the international community reflects on the future of development, some priorities deserve particular attention. First, the right to development must be recognized as a pillar of the international human rights framework. Rights have limited meaning when the conditions necessary to exercise them are absent. A child denied education, a family without electricity or clean water, or a farmer whose livelihood is destroyed by drought experiences a profound erosion of fundamental rights.

Second, climate action must be guided by fairness and justice. The need to confront climate change is undeniable, but the transition to a greener future cannot come at the expense of developing countries already bearing a disproportionate share of the burden. Nations such as Iraq face some of the world's most severe climate impacts while continuing to depend heavily on conventional energy resources. A successful energy transition must be balanced and attentive to the developmental needs of emerging economies.

Third, artificial intelligence opens up extraordinary opportunities to improve water management, climate forecasting, agriculture, education and healthcare. At the same time, it raises important questions about digital inclusion and global governance. Developing countries must have a voice in shaping the rules, standards and institutions that will define the future.

Fourth, development must remain centered on people. Iraq is a young country, with more than half its population under the age of 30. Like young people everywhere, Iraq's youth seek quality education, employment opportunities, stability and peace.

Finally, no discussion of human rights or the right to development can ignore the suffering of the Palestinian people. The 1986 Declaration on the Right to Development clearly recognized the need to confront the grave consequences of occupation and aggression. Decades of deprivation have denied the Palestinians many of the most basic conditions necessary for human flourishing.

Ultimately, peace remains the essential foundation of development. Wars destroy infrastructure, weaken institutions, displace populations, and rob future generations of opportunity. Lasting development cannot flourish in the shadow of conflict.

Iraq has come a long way on the path of recovery, though much work remains ahead. We are grateful for the partnerships and support that have contributed to this progress. At the same time, the international community must renew its commitment to a more equitable global order, one in which the right to development is regarded as a shared right of all humanity, not a privilege monopolized by a few nations.

Modern-day Iraq lies at the heart of the historic Fertile Crescent where civilization first flourished because nature provided the conditions for human life to thrive. It would be a profound tragedy if the birthplace of civilization became one of the first places where it begins to unravel under the combined pressures of environmental degradation, water scarcity and extreme heat.

Yet this future is not inevitable. With political will, international cooperation and a genuine commitment to human dignity, Iraq can once again become a place where future generations inherit the legacy of the Fertile Crescent as well as the opportunity to thrive within it.

Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid is former president of the Republic of Iraq.