Accelerating Change

“Water is our world's lifeblood, but it's being poisoned by pollution & drained by overuse.”- António Guterres, United Nations Secretary-General. Many of us take water for granted. Contrastingly, billions of people and countless schools, businesses, healthcare centers, farms, and factories are being held back because their human rights to water and sanitation still need to be fulfilled. Alarmingly, more than 800,000 women and girls die yearly because of lack of water, basic sanitation and hygiene. Increased disease is apparent in the 44 million pregnant women with sanitation-related hookworm, which causes maternal anemia and pre-term births. World Water Day has been observed since 1993 on March 22. The day is set aside to raise awareness and inspires action to tackle the water and sanitation crisis. It is about taking action to tackle the global water crisis of the 2.2 billion people living without access to safe water. It is a United Nations observance coordinated by UN-Water. The theme for the 2023 World Water Day is “accelerating the change to solve the water and sanitation crisis” The United Nations states that dysfunction throughout the water cycle undermines progress on all major global issues, from health to hunger, gender equality to jobs, education to industry, and disasters to peace. Gender Equality and a Global Water Crisis The United Nations states that more than 733 million people live in a context of high and critical water stress, where demand for safe, usable water outstrips supply. Where access is severely limited, women and girls must often walk long distances to collect improved water. In Iraq, which has high water stress (79.5 per cent), and where 30 per cent of the rural population has no improved drinking water on premises, women spend up to three hours per day collecting water. In India, in a quarter of rural households with no water on premises, women and girls devote more than 50 minutes per day to collecting water. By comparison, this figure was four minutes per day for men. Unaffordable, inaccessible water has specific implications for women’s health due to increased needs for water and hygiene during menstruation, pregnancy and postpartum recovery. The average basic water requirement for a lactating woman is 5.3 litres a day. At least 20 litres a day per person is required for other basic needs such as handwashing, face washing, cooking and food hygiene. But those living far from a water source make do with much less. Water stress is intensifying, taking tolls on women’s and girls’ time, health and lives. The proposed side event will focus on presenting the latest available data on the status of the water crisis and its differentiated impact on women and girls, most especially women and girls in poor households. Sustainable Development Goals The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), also known as the Global Goals, were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity. It must be noted that the global community is off target to achieve SDG #6 which speaks to Clean Water and Sanitation. The UN says that water scarcity affects more than 40 percent of the global population. Access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene is the most basic human need for health and well-being. Billions of people will lack access to these basic services in 2030 unless progress quadruples. Demand for water is rising owing to rapid population growth, urbanization and increasing water needs from agriculture, industry, and energy sectors. Decades of misuse, poor management, over extraction of groundwater and contamination of freshwater supplies has exacerbated water stress. In addition, countries are facing growing challenges linked to degraded water-related ecosystems, water scarcity caused by climate change, underinvestment in water and sanitation and insufficient cooperation on transboundary waters. Between 2015 and 2020, the population using safely managed drinking water services increased from 70 per cent to 74 per cent, the population with safely managed sanitation increased from 47 per cent to 54 per cent and the population with access to hand washing facilities with soap and water in the home increased from 67 per cent to 71 per cent. The UN adds, rates of progress for these basic services would need to quadruple for universal coverage to be reached by 2030. An evaluation of rivers, lakes and aquifers in 97 countries in 2020 shows that 60 per cent of water bodies assessed have good water quality. Of the 76,000 water bodies that were reported on in 2020, only 1 per cent was from the poorest countries. For at least 3 billion people, the quality of the water they rely upon is unknown owing to a lack of monitoring. Jamaica is currently experiencing a meteorological drought. In many communities across Jamaica residents mostly women and children can be seen on a daily basis walking with containers in search of water. The National Water Commission (NWC) says a continued decline in inflows to surface water sources across the island due to the effects of drought conditions has forced the disruption of water supply to a wide number of areas both in rural and urban areas. The Government has given a commitment to provide 10,000 black water tanks to needy households across Jamaica, starting in fiscal year 2023/24. The government announced that households on the Programme for Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH), households recommended by Members of Parliament (MPs) and assessed by the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation will qualify for the tanks. Water Conservation The truth is many of us are guilty of wasting water. Are you among those who stand in the shower when applying soap while the water is running? Water conservation has become essential in all regions, even where water seems abundant. That’s because our water resources are finite, and are getting smaller every year. There are many small things we can do around the home to save on water. A small drip from a worn faucet washer can waste 20 gallons of water per day. Larger leaks can waste hundreds of gallons. Some faucet leaks are easily spotted, but others take a little more effort to locate. It is recommended that we dry our sinks and tubs thoroughly and allow to remain for an hour. If you notice wetness, you have found a leak. To find leaks from faucet handles, dry the area around them before running water. Put a little food coloring in your toilet tank. If, without flushing, the color begins to appear in the bowl within 30 minutes, you have a leak that should be repaired immediately. Most replacement parts are inexpensive and easy to install. With regards to washing machines, the most efficient washing machines use as little as seven gallons per load, compared to a whopping 54 for a traditional washer. With clothes washers, avoid the permanent press cycle, which uses an added 5 gallons (20 liters) for the extra rinse. For partial loads, adjust water levels to match the size of the load. Water is life. Water is at the core of sustainable development and is critical for survival. The citizenry all have a role to play in water conservation. On this World Water Day the international community should recommit in reducing wastage of this most precious resource. In the words of the Dalai Lama, every human should have the idea of taking care of the environment, of nature, of water. So using too much or wasting water should have some kind of feeling or sense of concern. Some sort of responsibility and with that, a sense of discipline. Wayne Campbell is an educator and social commentator with an interest in development policies as they affect culture and or gender issues. waykam@yahoo.com @WayneCamo © #WorldWaterDay