World Water Day

  In 2022, the total area equipped for irrigation represented 23 percent of global cultivated land, an increase of 1.66 percent compared to 2015, when the share stood at 21.5 percent. Southern Asia had the highest proportion of cultivated land equipped with irrigation infrastructure , covering 46 percent of its total cultivated area in 2022, followed by Latin America and the Caribbean (32 percent) and Central Asia (25 percent). In contrast, sub-Saharan Africa had the lowest share, with only 3.8 percent of its cultivated land equipped for irrigation in the same year. Since 2015, Latin America and the Caribbean experienced the most significant growth inirrigated areas , with the share of cultivated land equipped for irrigation increasing from 17.4 percent in 2015 to 32 percent in 2022. In contrast, Western Asia and Central Asia saw a decline in irrigated land , with decreases of 1.96 percent and 1.78 percent respectively over the same period (Figure 11). At the national level, Bah...

  At the global level, freshwater withdrawals slightly increased by 0.1 percent between 2015 and 2022, though notable regional differences exist. Northern Africa saw the largest increase, with  freshwater withdrawals rising by 16 percent, from 117 million m3 in 2015 to 135 million m3 in 2022. Western Asia and sub-Saharan Africa also experienced significant increases in their withdrawals by 13 percent and 12 percent respectively during the same period. In contrast, Central Asia experienced the most significant reduction, with withdrawals dropping by 9 percent (from 123 million m3 in 2015 to 112 million m3 in 2022 (Figure 5). Eastern Asia, Southern Asia, and Europe and Northern America also recorded decreases of 3 percent or less. Per capita freshwater withdrawals showed a consistent downward trend since 2015, decreasing by 7 percent until 2022. In 2022, sub-Saharan Africa recorded the lowest per capita annual withdrawals at 89.5 m3 per person, down from 100.4 m3 in 201...

   Renewable water resources represent the long term average annual flow of rivers (surface water) and the recharge of aquifers ( groundwater ) generated by a country’s precipitation. That is, the water available for the population and productive activities in a country. At the per capita level, global freshwater availability in 2022 was estimated at 5 326 m3 per capita: a 7 percent decrease compared to 2015, when total renewable water resources stood at 5 719 m3 per capita (Figure 2). At the regional level, Northern Africa had the lowest freshwater resources per capita in 2022 with an estimated amount of 565 m3 per inhabitant, followed by Southern Asia (1 226 m3 per capita) and Western Asia (1 252 m3 per capita). The rest of the regions had 1 700 m3 per capita or more in the same year. Since 2015, all world regions experienced a decline in per capita availability of renewable water resources . Sub-Saharan Africa recorded the largest decrease, at 17 percent, followed by ...

   Access to clean water is a fundamental human right and a matter of survival, in particular in conflict zones. Stronger protection of freshwater resources and related infrastructure in armed conflict is urgently needed. "For millions, attacks on freshwater resources and related infrastructure bring dehydration, malnutrition, public health outbreaks, and the collapse of livelihoods and entire communities. These crises not only result in immediate suffering, but also undo decades of development, with lasting consequences for the protection, dignity and survival of the civilian population and the environment. The basic principles and rules of international humanitarian law and international human rights law are clear. Therefore, the persistence of attacks on or affecting freshwater resources and related infrastructure is not due to a lack of legal protections." [Extract from the organizer's concept note] Related Sites and Documents:  Organizer's concept note . Watch th...