SI UNESCO Representative Dominique Mertz reports back from
the Global Water Futures Forum.
By 2025, an estimated 60 percent of the world’s population
will live in “water-stressed” conditions. Securing access to safe drinking
water (MDG 7) for all and managing this limited resource is therefore a high priority
on the sustainable development agenda for the UN Conference on Sustainable
Development (Rio+20) to be held in Rio de Janerio, Brazil, from 20-22 June
2012.
The growing global water crisis is a reality which
Soroptimist International of Europe has focussed on a great deal in recent
years under the slogan: ‘Soroptimists Go For Water’ and more recently, ‘Soroptimists
Go For Water and Food’. You can read more about SIE’s representation at the 6th
World Water Forum here.
Millions die each year from water-borne diseases, while
water pollution and ecosystem destruction grow, particularly in the developing
world. Women and girls, who are responsible for providing their families
and communities with water in much of the Global South, are particularly
affected by pressures on water resources.
This
Forum, held in Paris on April 12th was an opportunity to review the global
progress that has been made towards the sustainable management of water
resources using integrated approaches, to better understand how investment and
financing in water can lead to a more sustainable future. It was also a chance
to present global water scenarios of what the future could look like depending
on the behaviour of decision-makers over the next few decades.
William Cosgrove,
Senior Adviser to the Fourth Edition of the United Nations World Water
Development Report; Manager, World Water Scenarios Project, summarises the key
issues when considering water resource management:
The World Water
Assessment Programme:
The United
Nation World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP) is a comprehensive review that
gives a picture of the world’s freshwater resources. Hosted and led by
UNESCO, the United Nations WWAP coordinates the work of 28 UN-Water members and
partners in the World Water Development Report.
1.
It
analyses pressures from decisions that drive demand for water and affect its
availability.
2.
It
offers tools and response options to help leaders in government, the private
sector and civil society address current and future challenges.
3.
It
suggests ways in which institutions can be reformed and their behaviour modified,
and explores possible sources of financing for the urgently needed investment
in water.
The 4th World Water Development Report:
This report, produced by WWAP, reports directly on regions and highlighting hotspots. It has
been mainstreamed for gender equality which means that for all key issues, the impact on women and girls has been taken into account explicitly. This key UN Water report is a
triennial review providing an authoritative picture of the state, use and
management of the world’s freshwater resources.
It
introduces a thematic approach – “Managing Water under Uncertainty and Risk” –
in the context of a world which is changing faster than ever in often
unforeseeable ways, with increasing uncertainties and risks.
It
highlights that historical experience will no longer be sufficient to approximate
the relationship between the quantities of available water and shifting future
demands.
The World Water Development Report also seeks to show that water has a central role
in all aspects of economic development and social welfare, and that concerted
action via a collective approach is needed to ensure water benefits are
maximized and shared equitably. This is essential if water-related development
goals are to be achieved.
For more information on the Future Forums click here.