WORLD
WATER DAY – March 22, 2007
Every year, the United Nations designates March 22
for international observance of World Water Day.
(See the letter from the UN General Secretary below).
The United Nations estimates that it would cost around $33 billion to
halve the number of people on
earth who lack access to safe, clean water. That may sound like a lot
of money, but it's actually only
one-third of what we spend each year on bottled water, supporting an
industry that has seen enormous
growth in recent years. Unclean water is considered the major cause of
disease throughout the world.
As global water scarcity looms, corporations are trying to take control
of public water resources and
systems, which is making the problem worse. Globally, corporations
promote water privatization under
the guise of efficiency. But there is no substitute for public water.
Water is a human right, not a
privilege only for those who can afford it.
For more info, see Centerings, Spring 2006 at
http://www.8thdaycenter.org/resources/centerings.html
ACTIONS
1. Send an email to Coke, Nestlé and Pepsi,
about their misleading advertisements aimed at turning a
shared natural resource into a commodity, by going to
http://www.stopcorporateabusenow.org/ct/jp1Xua41qzyB/
2. Participate in an educational or action event in a local near you.
Go to
http://www.stopcorporateabusenow.org/ct/jd1Xua41qzyd/
to find out if there is an event near you.
3. Buy a reusable water bottle to make a statement every time you drink
water. Go to
http://www.stopcorporateabusenow.org/ct/j71Xua41qzyc/
for bottles with the inscription “Think
outside the bottle”.
MESSAGE
ON WORLD WATER DAY -- MARCH 22, 2007
by Ban
Ki-moon, Secretary General of the United Nations
World Water Day is celebrated this year with a special focus on “Coping
with Water Scarcity”.
Water scarcity can be physical, economic or institutional, and can
fluctuate over time and space.
Today, about 700 million in 43 countries suffer from waters scarcity,
and by 2025 this figure could
increase to more than 3 billion people.
The state of the world’s waters remains fragile, and the need for an
integrated and sustainable approach
to water resource management is as pressing as ever. Available supplies
are under great duress as a
result of high population growth, unsustainable consumption patterns,
poor management practices,
pollution, inadequate investment in infrastructure, and low efficiency
in water-use.
Yet even more water will be needed in the future: to grow food, to
provide clean drinking water and
sanitation services, to operate industries and to support expanding
cities. The water-supply-demand
gap is likely to grow wider still, threatening economic and social
development and environmental
sustainability. Integrated water resources management will be of
crucial importance in overcoming
water scarcity. So will international cooperation, since many of the
world’s rivers and aquifers are
shared among countries. Such cooperation can also promote harmonious
cross-border ties in general.
The Millennium Development Goals have helped to highlight the
importance of access to safe drinking
water supplies and adequate sanitation, which undeniably separates
people living healthy and
productive lives from those living in poverty and who are most
vulnerable to various life-threatening
diseases. Making good on the global water and sanitation agenda is
crucial to eradicating poverty and
achieving the other development goals.
The way forward is clear: strengthening institutional capacity and
governance at all levels, promoting
more technology transfer, mobilizing more financial resources, and
scaling up good practices and
lessons learned. On this World Water Day, I call on the UN system and
all stakeholders to forge
stronger partnerships and take more concerted action, not only this
year, but throughout the entire
International Decade for Action: “Water for Life”, 2005-2015.