Water is at the centre of the climate crisis and has the power to unite communities and countries or spark conflict. Equitable access to clean water, safe sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) is fundamental to climate-resilient and socially cohesive communities, and critical to safeguarding the health of our precious water resources and wider ecosystems.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is underpinned by a commitment to leave no one behind, and as a cross-cutting goal, Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG6) - Water and sanitation for all - is critical to progress on all SDGs. However, all targets of SDG6 are currently lagging. 

Today:

• Some 2.2 billion people still live without safely managed drinking water, including 115 million people who drink surface water
• Around 1.8 billion people do not have drinking water on-premises, and in two out of three of these households, women are primarily responsible for water collection
• Roughly half of the world’s population experiences severe water scarcity for at least part of the year
• Diarrhoea caused by dirty water, poor toilets and insufficient hygiene kills a staggering 444,000 children annually, and contributes to high levels of malnutrition and stunting.

Climate change is felt most acutely through water

Too little, too much, polluted, contaminated, disputed - throughout the world, the effects of climate change are experienced most acutely through water. Over the past 50 years, water-related disasters have dominated the list of disasters and account for 70% of all deaths related to natural disasters. In the same period, the average number of extreme droughts has also increased 233%. 

The latest United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) 2022 Global Assessment Report highlights some emerging trends that will further impact on water quality, availability, accessibility and security. According to the report:

• Droughts likely to increase by 30% between 2001 and 2030
• Disasters are set to increase by 40% annually, and
• Extreme temperature events are projected to almost triple.

During times of water insecurity or scarcity, women and girls are among those worst affected – more vulnerable to gender-based violence, abuse, and ill-health, more likely to be caught up in water conflict, and largely precluded from educational, economic, and social opportunities for extended periods to collect water for their families and communities. By 2050, the United Nations predicts that climate change could push an additional 158 million women and girls into poverty.