World Water: Get the facts
- According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 1.7 billion people still lack access to clean water. 2.3 billion people suffer from water-borne diseases each year.
- While the demand for water is on the rise, the supply is shrinking. Water-intensive agriculture, population growth, industrial pollution, breakneck development and other ecological threats are depleting freshwater supplies.
- The World Bank and other dominant international financial institutions condition their loans on privatization and increased cost recovery – which often requires charging water fees from those who make less than $2 per day.
- The result of privatization in numerous countries has been disastrous – less access to water for the poor, extremely high tariffs, and poor water quality.
Food & Water Watch works with coalition partners in communities around the world that are facing the privatization of water. Our goal is to defend water as a public resource, to ensure access to safe and affordable water, to help to build a strong coalition against privatization, and to promote the recognition of the right to water internationally. More
