The focus of this study was to devise a way in order to optimise the use of surface water resources of Marab Hassan catchment area in the northeast Badia of Jordan. In order to achieve this aim different approaches have been used in the evaluation of the Marab's available surface water resources. The first approach was based on developing the synthetic unit hydrograph of the catchment area using the catchment characteristics, which were extracted from the catchment's Digital Elevation Model (DEM). However due to the lack of runoff data, the unit hydrograph could not be calibrated to establish the amount of water that the Marab area was receiving. As rainfall is the major source of runoff and due to its importance in the study area, a review of the rainfall records of the catchment area (both monthly and annually) was made. The second approach was to develop a correlation between the global climatic indices (ENSO, NAO and Indian Ocean) and the Jordanian rainfall. The correlation between the Annual Regional Rainfall Index (ARRI) and the seasonal climatic indices showed that there was a significant correlation, which was used for developing the rainfall probability model for the region. The developed models were verified and gave quite high reliability. This approach is useful decision making in the Marab area, especially when a dry year is predicted to occur, as this gives the farmers a lead-time to prepare themselves in advance. Review and analysis of Marab Hassan was a useful guide that lead to the identification of other Marabs that could possibly be developed. It also gave an indication about the sustainability and the planning of water harvesting technique that could be used to maximise the effective utilisation of the Marab and its present water resources.