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More Facts about the World Water Crisis

1.1 billion people (18% of the world's population) lack access to safe drinking water. 1
In a world of unprecedented wealth, almost 2 million children die each year due to a lack of clean water and inadequate sanitation. 2
The urgency of achieving the Millennium Development Goal for water and sanitation cannot be overstated. Even if the targets are achieved, there will still be more than 800 million people without water in 2015. 2
The cost of disease and productivity losses linked to unsafe water and poor sanitation in developing countries amount to 2% of GDP, rising to 5% in Sub-Saharan Africa-more than the region gets in aid. 2
Dirty water and poor sanitation account for the vast majority of the almost 2 million child deaths each year from diarrhea - almost 5,000 every day-making it the second largest cause of child mortality. 2
Access to clean water and sanitation can reduce the risk of a child dying by as much as 50%. 2
The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) call for halving "by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation." The MDG for safe drinking water on a global scale appears likely to be reached in most regions except sub-Saharan Africa. 3
At any one time, half of the world's hospital beds are occupied by patients suffering from water-borne diseases. 4
Over 76 million people will perish from water-related disease by 2020 unless urgent action is taken. 5
Water-related diseases could claim more lives than the global AIDS pandemic by 2020 unless major changes are made.5
Each year, more than 2.2 million people in developing countries die from preventable diseases associated with lack of access to safe drinking water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene. 6
In sub-Saharan Africa, a baby's chance of dying from diarrhea is almost 520 times the chance of that in Europe or the United States. 3
Poor health resulting from inadequate water and sanitation robs the children of schooling and the adults of earning power, a situation aggravated for the women and girls by the daily chore of collecting water. 3
Women and girls are mainly responsible for collecting enough water for drinking, cooking and basic hygiene, which may mean hauling heavy water containers from a distant source for an average of three hours a day to support a family of six. 3
The weight of the water container that women in Asia and Africa carry on their heads is equivalent to the baggage weight allowed by airlines (20 kg/44 lbs). 7
Many women and young girls in developing countries must walk as much as six miles everyday to retrieve water for their families. 8
For pregnant women, access to enough good quality water is vitally important to protect them from serious diseases such as hepatitis, which has no cure and infects over 50% of infants born to infected mothers. 3, 9
Currently, in sub-Saharan Africa, a larger proportion of women are infected with HIV than men. When women are living with HIV/AIDS, their suffering has a double impact on their families' water problems. 3
A World Health Organization Cost-Benefit Analysis showed that every US$1 invested in improved drinking water and sanitation services can yield economic benefits of US$4 to US$34 depending on the region. 3
The economic payback from investing US$11.3 billion per year to reach the Millennium Development Goals for drinking water and sanitation by 2015 is estimated to be US$ 84 billion. 10
The World Health Organization has estimated that productivity gains from a reduction in diarrheal disease if the Millennium Development Goal for drinking water and sanitation target is reached will exceed US$ 700 million a year. 3
When you flush the toilet, you are using the same water amount that one person in the Third World uses all day to wash, clean, cook and drink. 7

Sources

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