Global Policy Forum

By Jamal Saghir*

Few things are more fundamental to human existence than water. People all over the world, in rich countries or poor, need access to water. It is essential for hygiene and health. It is important for irrigation, to ensure food security. And it is a basic component of industry, necessary for hydropower and energy, which so many poor countries need for development. Water is also necessary to maintain ecosystems and biodiversity.

But bringing water and water infrastructure to those who lack access is no easy task. Overall, a staggering 1.1 billion people in the world lack access to safe drinking water. Some 45 million people in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) alone do not have access to safe water, and more than 80 million live without adequate sanitation. During the past century, while the world's population tripled, the aggregate use of water has increased six-fold, with irrigation accounting for the most global water withdrawal, along with industry and municipal use.

Increased water use has been at high environmental costs, too. Today, some rivers no longer reach the sea, and 50 percent of the world's wetlands have disappeared in the past century. At the same time, 20 percent of freshwater fish are now endangered or extinct. In many areas, many of the most important groundwater aquifers are being mined, with water tables already deep and dropping by meters every year. Without remedial action, 4 billion people, or half the world's projected population, are expected to live under conditions of severe water stress by 2025, especially in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia.

Inadequate external financing for the development of modern water infrastructure is one of the biggest hurdles for many developing countries. With so many of them facing sharply increasing costs to supply water, serious help is needed to generate financing for new investments. The new global priority setting is starting to translate to increases in donor funding. The European Union (EU), United States and Japan pledged a total of over $3 billion to major water initiatives at last year's Johannesburg summit on Sustainable Development.

Recently, the European Commission proposed the establishment of an EU Water Fund. With a budget of 1 billion euros ($1.18 billion), this fund will help give people in the 77 signatory countries of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Agreement access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation.

And during the Third World Water Forum held in Kyoto in March, governments, donors, multilateral institutions, nongovernmental organizations and the private sector were all encouraged to undertake concrete action for improved water management. The recent report of the World Panel on Financing Water Infrastructure, chaired by Michel Camdessus, has also urged the international community to intensify support in all aspects of the water sector. According to estimates of the World Commission on Water, which were quoted by the panel, water investment must increase from $75 billion to $180 billion annually. As part of this, annual water supply and sanitation investments must be doubled from $15 billion to $30 billion to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. Partnerships between public, private sector, and civil society will be key to mobilizing resources.

Water will also be high on the agenda of the G-8 countries meeting in Evian, France, this June. It will be also included in the program of seminars for the MENA region during the World Bank/IMF Annual Meetings in Dubai in September, and an important theme of a regional roundtable being organized by the World Bank and the Joint European Commission/World Bank Program on Private Participation in Mediterranean Infrastructure in Lebanon starting tonight.

But financing is not a panacea. To be effective, it must be complemented by tangible policy improvements on the ground. With help from the World Bank Group and others, developing countries will need to strengthen the capacity of their institutions for better management and development of water resources.

The way we manage water today will clearly have an impact on the water resources we have for use tomorrow. Better management of irrigation water, for instance, will increase the income of rural people and free up flows to be used for other purposes like drinking water and the environment.

For its part, the international development community has a collective responsibility to help developing countries improve their water management, develop their water resources and provide their citizens with access to water and basic sanitation. Such assistance though, should be tailored to each country's circumstances and be consistent with the long-term poverty reduction objectives of these countries. There is no "one size fits all" approach, especially in terms of service delivery.

The World Bank's main concern is that the poor have access to safe water in an affordable and sustainable manner. There is no model for service delivery; in some instances, it may be through the private or the public sector, or by public/private partnerships, including partnerships with civil society. It will depend on the cultural, political, economic, and social reality of the country in question.

There is no universal dogma. What works in Latin America will not necessarily work in the Middle East and North Africa, Africa or Asia. The decisions on which development path is best for a country need to be made with the full participation of all interested parties as a result of an informed debate.

The international development community must continue to help poor countries harness the true potential of water as an engine of sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction. It must focus on the productive role of water as a major catalyst for economic integration and cooperation at all levels from villages to international river basins. The direct economic benefits of doing so make such efforts every bit worth the while.

About the Author: Jamal Saghir is director of energy and water of the World Bank. He wrote this commentary for The Daily Star.

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