Optimising water supply and demand allocation using dynamic programming: addressing distribution inefficiencies

Water resource allocation is a critical issue for domestic, agricultural, and industrial sectors, particularly in regions facing water scarcity. This study aims to address the problem of inefficiency in water distribution among competing sectors, leading to unmet demands and resource wastage. The main objective of this study is to find an optimal allocation of water resources using a Dynamic Programming (DP) model to enable the available water supply to be distributed efficiently to meet the demand of each sector. A structured approach was employed to achieve this aim, beginning with a broad literature review of the prevailing strategies for allocation and how DP has been applied. Secondary data on the supply and demand of water resources from credible sources over the past five years were used. The DP model was then used to decompose this complex problem into more manageable subproblems to define optimal allocation strategies. The results obtained indicate that the proposed DP model effectively optimizes water distribution in every sector. Furthermore, data analysis results reflect that water demand is highly responsive to available water. This can be inferred from the fact that the maximum water demand is more sensitive to changes in the available water supply than the minimum demand, hence requiring adaptive management. In conclusion, this study provides valuable insights into the dynamics of water allocation and offers a robust framework that could enhance efficient distribution. Therefore, the adoption of the DP model in water management strategies by policymakers is highly recommended since it was complemented by real-time data monitoring to adapt to changing water availability and demands