Water is a fundamental resource for life on Planet Earth and access to clean drinking water is a basic human right. Furthermore, the effective management of water resources, sanitation, and distribution can significantly alleviate poverty and promote economic development globally. However, although in 2010, the United Nations General Assembly formally recognized the human right to clean water and sanitation, more than 2 billion people on the planet still lack access to safe, clean, drinkable water.
Why is this happening, and when will clean water be available to everyone? Let’s delve into some global statistics and discover the trends in the water sector.
Why is access to clean water important?
Improved water supply and sanitation, and better management of water resources, are not only important for public health – they can contribute greatly to poverty reduction and therefore boost the economic growth of countries.
For home and personal use, everyone has the right to an adequate supply of continually flowing, safe, physically accessible, and affordably priced water.
Impact of clean drinking water on human health
High levels of polluted water together with inadequate sanitation lead to the spread of significant health issues, particularly in developing countries, the most serious of which includes cholera, diarrhea, hepatitis A, typhoid fever, and polio.
This is especially true in healthcare settings where poor access to sanitation, hygiene, and water supplies leads to people becoming more susceptible to infection and disease.
Global clean water statistics
Based on the latest report from the U.N. World Water Development, around 2 billion people suffer from a lack of access to safe drinking water.
- 1.7 billion people risk their lives by consuming water that is polluted due to fecal contamination, which exposes them to harmful microbes, according to the World Health Organization.
- Of over eight billion people, six billion enjoy access to safely managed drinking water systems, defined as water sources that are on-site, readily available when required, and uncontaminated by priority chemicals and microorganisms.
- Poor hand hygiene and sanitation, together with unsafe drinking water, are the cause of 829,000 fatalities from diarrhea every year.
- Around 1.2 billion people living in sub-Saharan Africa (around 45% of the region’s population) lack proper access to clean water, forcing them to leave their homes to collect it.
- The same region is the only area in the world where just 45% of schools benefit from access to basic drinking water.
What proportion of the population has access to clean drinking water?
Although an increasing number of people now have access to clean water, progress remains gradual. Between 2015 and 2022, the percentage of those who enjoyed access to safely managed drinking water registered a steady increase of four percentage points – from 69% to 73%.
Source: OurWorldinData
Most people from European countries and North America, i.e., mostly high-income nations, had access to safely managed water sources.
Around 2.2 billion people nowadays reside in water-stressed nations which are defined as countries that extract at least 25% of their renewable freshwater resources to satisfy their populations’ water needs.
The graph below illustrates the changes in the proportion of the population with access to clean drinking water among different regions in 2015 and 2022.
Source: Statista
The data for 2022 shows that approximately 75% of people globally had access to safely managed drinking water. Europe and North America held the largest share, while sub-Saharan Africa had the lowest.
Most of the countries that registered the smallest share of their population having access to safe drinking water are located in sub-Saharan Africa with the Central African Republic and Chad topping the list with just 6%.
Source: Statista
Source: OurWorldinData
While surprisingly, even in some of the most developed nations and regions, 100% of the population does not have access to safely managed drinking water facilities, it is a fact that low-income countries suffer the most, with the share of those who have access to safe facilities being close to only 25% of the population.
The inequality of basic drinking water access
According to UNICEF, in 2022 around 5.8 billion people benefited from safely managed water services with an additional 1.5 billion using basic services. However, over 2 billion people remained without access to safely managed water systems with over half residing in sub-Saharan Africa. Furthermore, over 15% of people in sub-Saharan Africa relied on surface or unrefined water sources in 2022.
Nearly half of all people in this region collect water with four times as many women as men being responsible for doing so.
The disparities in water supply around the globe cause a significant lack of basic hygiene services. In 2022, 8% of people on the planet lacked access to even the most basic hand-washing facilities at home.
The share of people utilizing safely managed drinking water services drinking water (2022)
Source: UN
Although ubiquitous access to safely managed drinking water sources has been achieved in numerous developed nations, the level of accessibility in developing parts of the world varies greatly. Currently, just 20 nations out of more than 200 can state that over 99% of their population benefits from universal access levels.
How are women and girls impacted by a shortage of clean water?
Around 1.8 billion people obtain their water from off-site sources and most of those who have to fetch water are women (63%) with men being responsible for this in only 26% of households.
Every single day women and girls around the world devote almost 200 million hours to water – having to walk around 6 km to collect 18 liters of water and then carry this back – during which time they cannot devote themselves to their families, education, and income-earning activities.
Addressing the water crisis
There are several ways to address the water crisis and, according to the aid and humanitarian agency Concern Worldwide, these include:
Water trucking – a rapid short-term option to deal with water shortages, particularly in refugee camps or areas affected by drought, but it is costly and does not offer a long-term solution.
Building and renovating water points in communities – a more sustainable approach that often requires digging new wells or installing hand pumps in those that already exist.
Solar water pumps – an affordable and environmentally responsible solution in locations with erratic grid power supply.
Maintaining natural springs contributes to an uninterrupted supply of water that is free from contaminants.
Desalination and filtration techniques can improve the quality of non-potable water and make it safe to consume.
Rainwater harvesting systems – in locations with sufficient rainfall, these can help to gather and store rainwater for subsequent use.
Community participation is essential for taking responsibility for and the administration of water, sanitation, and hygiene initiatives.
Cooperation between governments at the local and national levels can improve the capacity to supply clean water and sanitary facilities, highlighting the importance of water and the costs associated with pollution.
Wrap-up
Although a fundamental human right, access to safe, clean drinkable water remains limited to more than 20% of the world’s population.
Sub-Saharan Africa is the region where the access rates are at the lowest level. Women and girls who are mostly engaged in providing drinking water for households are thus deprived of time for education, paid occupation, and leisure. Addressing the water crisis is a complex issue with a number of initiatives being launched across the regions.
