Fri, May 4, 2012 - Pre-publication
results: UN Survey of 130 Countries Provides
In-Depth Status Report on Global Efforts
to Improve Water Management
New York / Nairobi, 4 May 2012 - Over 80
per cent of countries have reformed their
water laws in the past twenty years as a
response to growing pressures on water resources
from expanding populations, urbanization
and climate change.
In many cases, such
water reforms have produced significant
impacts on development, including improvements
to drinking water access, human health and
water efficiency in agriculture.
At the same time, global
progress has been slower where irrigation,
rainwater harvesting and investment in freshwater
ecosystem services are concerned.
These are among the
findings of a United Nations survey of over
130 national governments on efforts to improve
the sustainable management of water resources.
The survey focuses on
progress towards the implementation of internationally-agreed
approaches to the management and use of
water, known as Integrated Water Resources
Management (IWRM).
Backed by UN Member
States at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit as part
of an overall action plan on sustainable
development (known as Agenda 21), IWRM is
a way forward for efficient, equitable and
sustainable development and management of
the world's limited water resources.
Amid increasing and
conflicting demands on the world's water
supply, IWRM integrates domestic, agricultural,
industrial and environmental needs into
water planning, rather than considering
each demand in isolation.
The latest survey is
intended to inform decision-making at the
Rio+20 Conference in June 2012. Twenty years
after the Earth Summit, world governments
will once again convene in Rio de Janeiro
to take decisions on how to ensure sustainable
development for the 21st century.
The survey, which was
co-ordinated by the UN Environment Programme
(UNEP) on behalf of UN-Water (the UN inter-agency
co-ordination mechanism for freshwater issues),
asked governments for their feedback on
governance, infrastructure, financing, and
other areas relating to water management,
to gauge how successful countries have been
in moving towards IWRM.
Overall, 90 per cent of countries surveyed
reported a range of positive impacts from
integrated approaches to water management,
following national reforms.
Other key findings include:
Water-related risks
and the competition for water resources
are perceived by a majority of countries
to have increased over the past 20 years;
Domestic water supply
is ranked by most countries as the highest
priority for water resources management;
The majority of countries
reported an increasing trend in financing
for water resources development, although
obstacles to implementing reforms remain;
Progress on water efficiency
is lagging behind other water management
reforms, with less than 50 per cent of national
reforms addressing water efficiency.
"The sustainable
management and use of water - due to its
vital role in food security, energy or supporting
valuable ecosystem services - underpins
the transition to a low-carbon, resource
efficient green economy," said UN Under-Secretary-General
and UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner.
"As well as highlighting
challenges, this new survey also shows important
successes regarding integrated water resources
management, where a more sustainable approach
to water has resulted in tangible benefits
for communities and the environment. At
Rio+20, governments will have the opportunity
to build on these innovations and chart
the way forward for sustainable development,
where the water needs of a global population
set to rise to 9 billion by 2050, can be
met in an equitable way," added Mr.
Steiner.
The UN survey shows
the major environmental changes that have
taken place between 1992, when IWRM was
firstly widely backed by governments, and
today - and how water resources are managed
in the face of such challenges.
The world population,
for example, increased from 5.3 billion
in 1992 to just over 7 billion today, with
impacts being felt most strongly in developing
countries. This has been accompanied by
increased rural-to-urban migration and high
refugee movements due to climatic and socio-political
disasters.
Successes and Challenges
The survey shows that
the introduction of IWRM on a national level
varies greatly across the globe - from early
planning stages to concrete implementation
of new laws and policies.
When responding to the
survey, some governments reported significant
development impacts as a result of pursuing
IWRM strategies since 1992, such as:
Estonia: Introducing
water charges and pollution taxes contributed
to improved water efficiency and a reduction
of pollution load into the Baltic Sea.
Costa Rica: 50 percent
of revenues gained from water charges are
now re-invested in water resource management.
Guatemala: Hydropower generation capacity
almost doubled between 1982 and 2011.
Ghana: 40 percent of irrigation schemes
for more effective water use and productivity
have been rehabilitated.
Chad: Access to water supply increased from
15 percent in 11000 to 50 per cent in 2011.
Tunisia: 110 wastewater treatment plants
have been built.
Yet many countries -
particularly those in developing regions
- signaled a need for increased capacity-building,
investment and infrastructure development
in order to fully implement integrated water
resources management.
Country Perception of
Key Issues
The water-related issues
cited most often as 'high' or 'highest priority'
by governments are infrastructure development
and financing (79 per cent of all countries)
and financing for water resources management
(78 per cent).
Climate change is cited
as a high priority for action in a majority
of countries (70 per cent overall) and 76
per cent of countries considered that the
threat to water resources from climate change
has increased since 1992.
But the survey also
highlights important differences between
developed and developing countries in terms
of water-related priorities. Using the Human
Development Index, the survey categorized
countries in four groups: low HDI, medium
HDI, high HDI and very high HDI.
Ensuring adequate water
supply for agriculture is a high priority
for many low HDI countries, while the preservation
of freshwater ecosystems ('water for environment')
is a priority mainly for very high HDI countries.
Survey Recommendations
The survey includes
a number of suggested targets and recommendations,
which are designed to inform decision-makers
at Rio+20. These are based on an assessment
of the findings from the survey and include:
By 2015, each country
should develop specific targets and timeframes
for preparing and implementing a programme
of action and financing strategy for IWRM.
By 2015, a global reporting
mechanism on national water resources management
should be established. This is to ensure
a more rigorous reporting system on progress
with IWRM, and improve the availability
of information.
More effort is needed
to increase levels of financing and to improve
the institutional framework for water resources
management - especially focusing on low
HDI countries.
Notes to Editors
The UN-Water Status
Report on the Application of Integrated
Approaches to Water Resource Management
will be launched at the Rio+20 Conference
on 19 June 2012 during the 'Water Day' coordinated
by UN-Water. An embargoed copy of the full
report can be obtained upon request (see
contact information below).
More information on
Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM)
is available at: http://www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/iwrm.shtml.
The UN-Water assessment
was based on two surveys: a questionnaire-based
survey among all UN Member States (Level
1 survey) and an interview-based survey
in 30 representative countries (Level 2
survey).
134 countries responded
to the Level 1 survey, representing 70 per
cent of UN Member States and fairly even
distribution among geographical regions
and HDI groups.
A list of all questions
and the countries that participated in the
survey is provided in an annex to the report.
