Access to water is a global problem which affects essential areas such as health, the food supply, education and the development of local communities.
A global challenge
According to the Human Development Report 2006 by UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) at present more than 1 billion people in the world do not have access to drinking water. In addition, 2.6 billion people have no sanitation. Their untreated wastewater either returns back into the environment causing a potential risk of pollution; or it is discharged into precisely those areas where the local communities live thereby leading to possible epidemics.
The complexity and gravity of the issues of access to water and sanitation make them the major challenge facing humanity. According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) the world's population is expected to increase from the current figure of 6.4 billion to 8.9 billion people by 2050. The poorest countries will see their populations triple and will then account for 1.7 billion people.
Access to water and sanitation for all is a global challenge. It is a matter of some urgency that this challenge is met for the sake of both current and future generations.
Haut de page
Haut de page
Health and food issues
Health issues
Lack of drinking water is the primary cause of death and illness in the world. According to the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme), 1.8 million children die each year before the age of five from diarrhea and other water-related infections.
The largest global epidemics in terms of the amount of people affected are epidemics of malaria and dengue fever. These epidemics are directly related to stagnant water (as they are transmitted by the many mosquitoes found in the swamps of hot countries).
Food issues
40% of the world's food is produced using agricultural systems of irrigation (use of floodwater, sprinklers, drip systems etc.).
The increased global agricultural production required to feed the 8.9 billion people that are expected to be living on the planet by 2050 will not be possible unless water is used more wisely.
Social and financial issues
Social issues
In developing countries these are particularly acute for the poorest communities living in rural areas or those in the outlying city suburbs who are most affected by the lack of drinking water.
In these communities, it is primarily the women and children - to the detriment of their school education - who go to fetch the water.
Those living in shanty towns sometimes buy water from unofficial water porters in order to avoid having to fetch water themselves. They pay five, ten, twenty times the price paid in the town center for a water service whose quality is not guaranteed.
These communities are also deprived of access to sanitation and are subject to major health and hygiene risks.
Financial issues
According to the report "Financing Water for All" (Kyoto 2003), current annual investment in the water sector is approaching €80 billion.
The necessary financial requirements to achieve the goal of a universal service by 2025 are estimated to be €180 billion per year.
This report therefore concludes that it would in theory be necessary to more than double current investment in order to provide a minimum water service for all users and at affordable prices.
Environmental issues
Regarding available water resources, freshwater is an unequally distributed resource (glaciers and snow account for two thirds of the world's freshwater). Water abstraction is increasing to meet the demand from migration and increased urbanization in various regions that are already highly populated, and even variations in the climate increase pressure on existing resources
This is particularly the case in costal regions (up to 80 km inland), where some communities tend to congregate together in towns and cities. Excess pumping from aquifers leads to infiltration of saltwater which in turn diminishes the stock of freshwater and makes it more difficult to treat the water as well as corroding the water mains.
It has been shown that the consequences of climatic changes will firstly affect water resources. In 2006 the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) noted that a number of regions that are already affected by water stress, i.e. water shortages, will have less and less water in the future due to expected climatic upheavals.
The combined effect results in major problems. Half of the wetlands have disappeared since the beginning of the 20th century, while half of the major rivers and lakes around the world are polluted.
Development issues
Urban development issues
Regions in the developing world are seeing an unprecedented exodus from the countryside. In these regions the urban population is increasing by 2.3% a year. It is expected to double by 2030.
The arrival of new population groups makes it more difficult to meet the needs for clean water, and local authorities are having difficulty in meeting these needs.
This phenomenon of increased urbanization goes hand in hand with the proliferation of informal settlements on the outskirts of cities and towns where the poorest live. It is these communities, already vulnerable by being displaced, which are often the first to be affected by the lack of water, sanitation and therefore health emergencies.
Geopolitical issues
Two thirds of major rivers and aquifers are shared between several countries.
As a result, two out of five people depend on these shared water resources. However, few international agreements exist on how this water can be managed. With the world's population increasing as well as the move towards urbanization, it is feared that water resources will become scarcer and scarcer. This could then result in new sources of conflict.