- It essentially means that globally, 1 in 5 children worldwide do not have enough water to meet their everyday needs.
- Eastern and Southern Africa regions have the highest proportion of children (58%) living in areas with extremely high water vulnerability. It is followed by West & Central Africa (31%), South Asia (25%), and the Middle East (23%)
- South Asia is home to the largest number of children living in areas of high or extremely high water vulnerability – more than 155 Million children.
- The report is part of UNICEF’s ‘Water Security for All’ initiative.Global water demand is projected to increase by 20 to 30 per cent per year by 2050.
- More than 2 crores (20 Million) children in India are experiencing extremely high water vulnerability.
Goal
- UNICEF has set a goal to reach 450 Million Children & their families (1.42 Billion people) with resilient solutions for improving the water vulnerability by 2025.
- All children to have access to a safe and affordable water supply and to live in water secure communities by 2030.
‘37 Hotspots’
- The report has highlighted 37 hot-spot countries where children are faced with High Water Vulnerability.
- Some of the countries are Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Haiti, Kenya, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Sudan, Tanzania & Yemen.
- Hotspot countries are those which meet any one of the following criteria: ≥ 60% High Water Vulnerability; ≥ 40% Extremely High Water Vulnerability; ≥ 40% children in High and Extremely High Water Vulnerability; ≥ 2M people in High and Extremely High Water Vulnerability
Key Points
- Children in more than 80 countries live in areas with high or extremely high water vulnerability.
- Less than 3% of the World’s water resources is freshwater, and it is growing increasingly becoming scarce.
- Global water demand is projected to increase by 20 to 30 % per year by 2050.
Causes of Water Scarcity
The report has listed various factors responsible for increasing water scarcity.
- Rapid Population Growth
- Urbanization
- Water misuse & mismanagement
- Climate change & extreme weather events
- Increasing Water Stress
Fact
- According to a UNICEF report from 2017, nearly 600 Million or almost 1 in 4 children globally live in areas of extremely high water stress by 2040.
‘Water Security for All’
- It is an initiative launched by UNICEF to ensure that every child has access to sustainable and climate-resilient water services.
Recent Related News:
i.December 14, 2020, In accordance with the WHO and UNICEF report, “Fundamentals first: Universal water, sanitation, and hygiene services in health care facilities for safe, quality care” around 1.8 billion people are at heightened risk of COVID-19 and other diseases because of lack of WASH provision.
About United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF):
Executive Director– Henrietta Holsman Fore
Headquarter– New York, USA
