December 12, 2003

By: Holly Rebekah
Website: http://www.water-purification-filters.com

New partnerships to help several hundred million poor people access clean water

Currently, at least 1.1 billion people lack access to safe water supplies and almost 2.5 billion people do not have access to adequate sanitation. More than 2.2 million people in developing countries die each year from diseases associated with unsafe drinking water, inadequate sanitation and hygiene.

Two thirds of the world’s population may be living in countries that face serious water shortage by 2015 unless we take action. Priorities include improving the efficiency of water use, better watershed management, and reducing leakage, especially in the many cities where water losses are a 40 percent or more of total water supply.

The Global Water Partnership -- a global alliance of stakeholders from over 140 countries, including UN agencies, governments, non-governmental and private sector organizations, -- and the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives are partners in this Dialogue on Effective Water Governance, which will be presented on 30 August. Water governance systems and action strategies to improve them will be analyzed in a series of roundtables.

“The competition for increasingly precious water resources has intensified dramatically over the past decade, reaching a point where water shortages and degraded water quality are seriously affecting prospects for economic and social development,” said UNDP Administrator Mark Malloch Brown.

Globally, about 70 percent of freshwater is used for agriculture, but most irrigation systems are inefficient. In the next two decades, it is expected that water for use by people will increase by 40 percent and that 17 percent more water will be needed to grow food crops.

The new partnership being launched by governments, civil society, businesses, international organizations and other major groups is expected to be one of the main outcomes of the Johannesburg Summit. A political declaration reaffirming the commitments to sustainable development and an implementation plan with specific targets to meet the Millenium Development Goals are also expected outcomes.

“Achieving the Millennium Development Goal of halving the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water will require the mobilization of international and domestic financial resources, technology transfer and the capacity to ensure that infrastructure and services meet the needs of the poor, especially women”, said Mr. Malloch Brown.

Water can be both an effective basis for dialogue to build trust and confidence. Increased cooperation between countries sharing the same water is critical, especially in water scarce regions.

UNDP is already part of a successful international public-private partnership to restore the degraded Black Sea ecosystem on which so much economic activity and human health depends. The partnership brings together 15 countries in the Danube River Basin, two regional commissions, UNDP and other UN organizations, the World Bank, and non-governmental organizations. UNDP is also working with UN Industrial Development Organization to help build cleaner factories and sustainable industries in the region.

The World Water Forum to be held in Japan in early 2003 will present the next major international opportunity to address water and resource management issues.

Author Notes:

Holly Rebekah contributes and publishes news editorial to http://www.water-purification-filters.com.  Get educated on the benefits of water purification systems and water filters available.