Water scarcity hits 40pc world people

At least 40 per cent of the world's people are affected by water scarcity at present, with as many as 700 million people at risk of being displaced by intense water scarcity by 2030, reports BSS.

More than two billion people are compelled to drink unsafe water and more than 4.5 billion people do not have safely managed sanitation services, according to a report of the High-Level Panel on Water (HLPW).

The HLPW handed over the outcome of the report on Thursday to the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and Senior Representative of the World Bank President at the UN Headquarters in New York, USA.

The panel's report found that women and girls suffer disproportionately when water and sanitation are lacking, affecting health and often restricting work and education opportunities.

"80 per cent of wastewater is discharged untreated into the environment and water-related disasters account for 90 per cent of the 1,000 most devastating natural disasters since 1990," it revealed.

The High-Level Panel on Water (HLPW) consisting of 11 Heads of State and a Special Adviser of the UN, however, called for a fundamental shift in the way the world manages water so that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and in particular SDG6, can be achieved.

While receiving the report UN Secretary-General António Guterres said, "World leaders now recognise that we face a global water crisis and that we need to reassess how we value and manage water."

He said the panel's recommendations can help to safeguard water resources and make access to safe drinking water and improved sanitation a reality for all.