Source material and useful links for Water Scarcity briefings

14/4/2021: There is no evidence that formal international commitments to deliver access to clean water and safe sanitation achieve results. It is effective national and municipal leadership that makes the real difference, therefore more deserving of funding support than construction projects.

Source: From Poverty to Power

Talks collapse on Ethiopia's Nile dam

6/4/2021: The latest round of talks between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam appear to have broken down. Hosted by the Democratic Republic of Congo in Kinshasa, the meeting represented the last chance to re-start negotiations before Ethiopia begins to fill the dam for the second year in a row.

Source: DW

Why water & sanitation systems are vital

21/3/2021: Governments need to triple their infrastructure budgets for providing clean water, according to the World Bank. The outcome of reduced health care costs and increased productivity would deliver a $4.30 return for every dollar invested.

Source: Inter Press Service

UN points to moral failure of billions without clean water

18/3/2021: Speakers at a UN high-level meeting on ensuring water and sanitation are available to all have deplored the fact that three billion people still lack basic handwashing facilities, even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The UN Deputy Secretary-General said that the current rate of progress would have to quadruple to meet the 2030 deadline for Sustainable Development Goal 6.

Source: UN News

Chamoli glacier burst: Himalayan blunders compounded

11/2/2021: Some 7,000 MW of hydroelectric projects are either operating or being constructed in the Himalayan region of the Ganga; back to back; with no respect for the river or its need to flow naturally. Sunita Narain warns that the issue is about the carrying capacity of this fragile region, which is even more at risk because of climate change.

Source: Down to Earth

Syria: Are water supplies being weaponized by Turkey?

24/1/2021: Water outages in Syria's northeast are often leaving around half a million people without potable water. Is Turkey using the outages as a weapon to destabilize the region, as some claim?

Source: DW

Are water futures the future of water?

19/1/2021: For the first time, water was traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in December 2020. Farmers and municipal authorities can now bet on the future price of California water. However, water futures have so far failed to address concerns regarding access to water in developing countries. There is no easy panacea for humanity’s water needs.

Source: Third World Network

Chinese dams under US scrutiny in Mekong rivalry

14/12/2020: A US-funded project using satellites to track and publish water levels at Chinese dams on the Mekong river has been launched, adding to the superpowers' rivalry in Southeast Asia.

Source: CNA

Address water scarcity 'immediately and boldly’, urges UN agriculture agency chief

26/11/2020: The Food and Agriculture Organization’s flagship report notes that available freshwater resources have declined globally by more than 20 per cent per person over the past two decades. Action should focus on the agriculture sector – the world’s largest user of water.

Source: UN News

New UN special rapporteur on water and sanitation lays out his priorities

9/11/2020: Pedro Arrojo-Agudo, a Spanish professor and ecologist, has taken up this voluntary UN position. Exploring the impact of COVID-19 and the climate crisis on water and sanitation will be his first priority.

Source: Devex

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