World Water Congress urges more attention to developing countries
Monday, 15 September 2008
VIENNA, Sept. 14 (Xinhua): International water experts attending the 6th World Water Congress said on Friday that more attention should be given to problems in the developing countries, including those with regard to water supplies and sanitation.
It is estimated that about 60 countries, most of them developing countries in the Middle East, North Africa, the sub- Sahara region as well as South and Central Asia, will face a shortage of water supply till 2050, according to the 6th World Water Congress.
The six-day congress, organised by the International Water Association (IWA), opened here on Sunday, with the attendance of about 3,000 experts and scholars from around the world.
According to data released at the gathering, more than 80 per cent of infectious diseases in developing countries are caused by insufficient sanitation or clean drinking water.
Experts said that in the past few years, global economic growth has contributed to the fight against poverty and efforts to improve water supply and sanitation.
However, it should be admitted that most poor countries and regions have not experienced evident improvements.
Participants in the meeting said developed countries have the responsibility to help developing countries.
Moreover, with rapid industrialisation, some problems directly related to water safety and sanitation have also cropped up, such as water pollution and overuse of water.
World Bank expert Abel Mejia said that according to the U.N. Millennium Development Goals, the sise of poverty-stricken population without access to clean water and basic sanitation should have been reduced to half by 2015. However, this process is very slow at least in Africa. On current trends, Africa may not achieve this goal until 2076.
Some experts said more importance should be attached to the relationship between urbanisation and water safety. The urbanisation and expansion of cities have posed great threats to the safety of urban water supply.
Mejia said there are 21 megalopolises in the world each with a population of more than 10 million and 17 of them are in developing countries.
In addition, experts said there are two ways of combating water shortages-"increasing income" and "reducing expenditure."
While desalting of seawater is a means to "increase income," it now can not serve as a major measure. Therefore, water conservation including recycling should be the main method at present.
In a sense, the world lacks not only water, but also effective and proper utilisation and management of water resources, said Klaus-Jochen Sympfer, an expert in water resource management from PP Ingenieurgesellschaft mbH of Germany.
Although water recycling has already been acknowledged as an effective measure to save water resources, the current waste water purification and utilisation efficiency in the world is only 5 per cent, Sympfer said.
It is estimated that about 60 countries, most of them developing countries in the Middle East, North Africa, the sub- Sahara region as well as South and Central Asia, will face a shortage of water supply till 2050, according to the 6th World Water Congress.
The six-day congress, organised by the International Water Association (IWA), opened here on Sunday, with the attendance of about 3,000 experts and scholars from around the world.
According to data released at the gathering, more than 80 per cent of infectious diseases in developing countries are caused by insufficient sanitation or clean drinking water.
Experts said that in the past few years, global economic growth has contributed to the fight against poverty and efforts to improve water supply and sanitation.
However, it should be admitted that most poor countries and regions have not experienced evident improvements.
Participants in the meeting said developed countries have the responsibility to help developing countries.
Moreover, with rapid industrialisation, some problems directly related to water safety and sanitation have also cropped up, such as water pollution and overuse of water.
World Bank expert Abel Mejia said that according to the U.N. Millennium Development Goals, the sise of poverty-stricken population without access to clean water and basic sanitation should have been reduced to half by 2015. However, this process is very slow at least in Africa. On current trends, Africa may not achieve this goal until 2076.
Some experts said more importance should be attached to the relationship between urbanisation and water safety. The urbanisation and expansion of cities have posed great threats to the safety of urban water supply.
Mejia said there are 21 megalopolises in the world each with a population of more than 10 million and 17 of them are in developing countries.
In addition, experts said there are two ways of combating water shortages-"increasing income" and "reducing expenditure."
While desalting of seawater is a means to "increase income," it now can not serve as a major measure. Therefore, water conservation including recycling should be the main method at present.
In a sense, the world lacks not only water, but also effective and proper utilisation and management of water resources, said Klaus-Jochen Sympfer, an expert in water resource management from PP Ingenieurgesellschaft mbH of Germany.
Although water recycling has already been acknowledged as an effective measure to save water resources, the current waste water purification and utilisation efficiency in the world is only 5 per cent, Sympfer said.