All the ifs of life come to mind when life is passing throuh difficult times because that is when we think of having a better life. If I hadn`t flunked the most important exam of my life; if I could find a better job; if I have $1 million in my account. But can we for a moment forget our personal ifs and spare a thought for the people of Darfur and their greatest if: water. If only they had enough water?

If the people in Darfur have enough water, they would welcome their Muslim brothers from the north with open arms. If they get enough water, they would start growing crops instead of killing each other. If they have water, some emaciated boys in a refugee camp would not fight fiercely over a bottle of soft drink given by a visitor.

Water to drink and irrigate the land has always been scarce, even though two-thirds of our planet`s surface is water. Global warming and rapid desertification has made water a dearer commodity. Darfur is one of those places on Earth where water is really dear. Actually, water is the elixir of life there.

"People in Darfur have been fighting for water for decades. That fight has intensified over the past few years as desertification becomes more rapid," says China`s special envoy for Darfur Liu Guijin while talking with people at the Otcath Refugee Camp near Nyala on Tuesday.

"Water is the basic element needed for the development of the local economy, (that`s why) building water plants shows China`s pragmatism in helping the people in Darfur, " he said.

As if in total agreement, a resident of the camp tells Liu: "In fact, what we need is very simple: a safe place with just enough water."

The Darfur region is in western Sudan. It comprises the provinces of West Darfur (capital: Al Junaynah) North Darfur (capital: Al Fashir) and South Darfur (capital: Nyala). Trouble broke out in Darfur in February 2003 when the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) launched attacks on policemen and government facilities. Since then thousands of people have been killed and many more thousands displaced.

Darfur is home to about 80 tribes, and the dearth of resources, especially water, has turned it into a hotbed of conflicts between settled communities and those used to a nomadic way of life. But never before 2003 had violence been so intense and widespread.

China understands that the dearth of resources, which prevents development, is the real cause of the conflicts in Darfur. That`s why it has been helping build facilities.

A Chinese company is building a $50-million water supply project in the region that can provide 40,000 cubic meters of water a day - almost four times as much as the current volume - to people living in and around Nyala. But providing water for more than 500,000 mouths is far from a smooth operation, especially if they live in and around a city that sits on an arid earth crest.

"We hoped to find crystal clear water here, but what we could dig out initially were only dry rocks," says Liu Jianfang, project manager of China National Machinery Import & Export Corporation, which has signed a development loan project with the Export-Import Bank of China.

Good luck, however, smiled on Liu Jianfang`s team, as well as people living in Nyala, in 2006 when water was found in Bagra Basin, about 85 km away.

Local people realize the importance of what Liu Jianfang and his team have been doing and appreciate their contribution. Among those who have praised them are members of Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM), which gave up control of the water resources after signing a peace deal with the government.

"We`ve had problems such as how to get water here and irrigate the land for a long time. But now with your help, everything is going to be good", says SLM`s former leader Mohamed Harin. He now works as senior advisor to South Darfur`s transitional government.

"When I explained to them that we were here to help get them water, the SLM leaders jumped to the idea. They hugged me and clicked photographs with me," Liu Jianfang says.

"Once when I was visiting Bagra, an SLM leader even slaughtered a lamb for a feast to show his respect and said: `Now we have only one (lamb), a couple of years later we will have many more to offer you`."

To respect the sentiments of the SLM leaders and members, Liu Jianfang`s company has even changed the logo on its uniform from Nyala Water Supply to Bagra Water Supply.

Liu Jianfang`s company began exploring the region for water in 2004, when the security situation was much worse. Now that "fighting in South Darfur has subsided and some SLM leaders` are cooperating, our project is moving smoothly", he says.

Liu`s team began building a water plant in January, and is laying pipes now. Their next step will be digging wells in Bagra. The project should be up and running in 20 months.

Water can really make a difference in Darfur, and we hope to make it, Liu says.