INTRODUCTION. Water plays an important role for creatures to keep them alive and life is impossible without it. In fact, freshwater is only about 2.5 of the total amount of water on the Earth. Because of this low percentage and high increase in population, the pressure on this kind of water resources is getting bigger and makes the amount of it small. This report will discuss the major factors and effects of water shortage and it will give some solutions and recommendations. 2 BACKGROUND AND HISTORY. The problem of water shortage initially existed in the beginning of the 19th century then it separated all around the world as the number of people getting higher. It was noticed in North Africa and the Middle East in 1900 and made people there suffering from thirsty. As Kalaugher 2010 said that over one-fifth of people in Eastern Asia and North Africa have been under some stages of water scarcity since 1900 P 1 3 WATER CRISIS.