Background
The initiation of a UN system-wide World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP) was first announced during the 2nd World Water Forum, held in The Hague (2000). The Forum thus provided the backdrop and the context against which WWAP has matured and defined its mission.
Of special importance for WWAP and the whole process since the 1992 Rio Earth Summit are The Hague Ministerial Declaration (Section 7.b) and the Framework for Action, both of which emerged as key documents from the 2nd World Water Forum. These documents emphasize the need to establish better ways and means of measuring progress towards the realisation of targets. Specifically, they call for better monitoring of Agenda 21, and they identify seven challenge areas on which to concentrate. These challenges - and four additional challenges not included in the Ministerial Declaration - have been adopted as the primary focus of the First World Water Development Report (WWDR), issued at the occasion of the 3d World Water Forum in Kyoto in March 2003.
The Programme is responsible for devising ways to measure these challenges by developing key indicators, while the WWDR documents progress towards meeting each challenge using WWAP methodology.
To learn more about challenges and pledges made by individual countries in The Hague, click here.
Challenges to Life and Well-Being
These challenges cover the issues related to the ways we use water and the increasing demands we are placing on the resource. Signs of stress and strain are apparent across every sector: heath, ecosystems, cities, food, industry and energy. With population growth and continuing pollution, these pressures are likely to increase.
Click on one of the challenges below to learn more:
Meeting Basic Needs
Protecting Ecosystems
Water and Cities
Securing the Food Supply
Water and Industry
Water and Energy
Management Challenges: Stewardship and Governance
How can water's competing needs, uses and demands be met? These management challenges focus on the tools available or still to develop to encourage an efficient and equitable use of the resource.
Click on one of the challenges below to learn more:
Managing Risks
Sharing Water Resources
Valuing Water
Ensuring the Knowledge Base
Governing Water Wisely
Challenges and agencies concerned
Meeting Basic Needs
Other publications by WWAP partner agencies
Atlas of Children's Health and the Environment
2004, World Health Organization (WHO)
This book shows that basic threats such as unsafe water, lack of sanitation, malaria and indoor air pollution are still responsible for most children's deaths today.
Climate Change and Human Health - Risks and Responses
2003, World Health Organization (WHO)
This book examines the health impacts of climate change, including changes in infectious disease transmission patterns. |
 Having access to safe and sufficient water and sanitation are now recognized as basic human rights. Being able to wash one's hands and drink clean water can have a major impact on family hygiene and health. Women play an especially important role in this process. Because people who are poor are most likely to get sick, and ill health perpetuates poverty, it triggers a vicious cycle that hampers economic and social development.
 Access "Basic Needs and the Right to Health", a chapter from the WWDR. [PDF format - 1.5 MB].
- Lead agency for this chapter
- WHO - World Health Organization
- Collaborating agency for this chapter
- UNICEF - United Nations Children's Fund
Access Facts and Figures on Basic Needs.
Protecting Ecosystems
 The possible negative impact of human activity on the environment must be considered when managing water resources in a sustainable way. It is not enough to draw water from nature for use in agriculture, industry, and everyday life without also taking account of nature's needs. Animals and plants, landscapes and wetlands need clean water too. Wastewater must be recycled so that pollution is minimized. Special areas like estuaries, which play an important part in supporting the delicate and complex food chain of many birds and fish, may require total protection. Human beings must learn to respect the resource base on which life ultimately depends and to see land and water as two sides of the same coin. For this reason, decisions should be taken at river basin level, when possible.
Access "Protecting Ecosystems for People and Planet", a chapter of the WWDR. [PDF format - 1.3 MB]
- Lead agency for this chapter
- UNEP - United Nations Environment Programme
- Collaborating agencies for this chapter
- UNECE - United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
- WHO - World Health Organization
- CBD - Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity
- UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
- UNDESA - United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
- UNU - United Nations University
Access Facts and Figures on Protecting Ecosystems.
Water and Cities
Other publications by WWAP partner agencies
The State of the World's Cities Report 2001
2001, United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat)
Since 1996, Habitat has been monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the Habitat Agenda using a variety of tools including best practices and urban indicators. This report presents comprehensive analyses of urban issues.
Running Pure
2003, World Bank/WWF Alliance for Forest Conservation and Sustainable Use
This report shows that there is a significant link between the protection of forests and the provision of water supplies for cities. [PDF format - 1.87 Mo] |
 By 2030, over 60% (nearly 5 billion people) of the world's population will be living in urban areas. As a result, competing demands from domestic, commercial, industrial and peri-urban agriculture are putting enormous pressure on freshwater resources. In their bid to meet soaring demand, cities are going deeper into ground water sources and farther to surface water sources, at costs - including environmental costs - which are clearly unsustainable. Cities also face the challenge of securing access to safe water for the urban poor, and of cutting down on wasteful and illegal uses. The urban water crisis can only be met by changes in management and governance that lead to more sustainable use of the shared resource.
Access "Cities: Competing Needs in an Urban Environment", a chapter from the WWDR. [PDF format - 801 KB]
- Lead agency for this chapter
- UN-Habitat - United Nations Human Settlements Programme
- Collaborating agencies for this chapter
- WHO - World Health Organization
- UNDESA - United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
Access Facts and Figures on Water and Cities
Securing the Food Supply
 The challenge here is to increase food production and security by getting 'more crop per drop', while also devising ways to ensure a more equitable allocation of water for food production. Since about 80% of the world's water is used for irrigation, even small changes in the way crops are planted, watered and harvested can make a big difference. Better ways to enhance the productivity of rainfed agriculture must also be developed. Poor populations are the most vulnerable, and the strain will only increase in the face of demographic pressure.
Access "Securing Food for a Growing World Population", a chapter from the WWDR. [PDF format - 1.4 MB]
- Lead agency for this chapter
- FAO - Food and Agriculture Organization
- Collaborating agencies for this chapter
- WHO - World Health Organization
- UNEP - United Nations Environment Programme
- IAEA - International Atomic Energy Agency
Access Facts and Figures on Securing the Food Supply.
Water and Industry
 Industry is both a major user of water resources and a major contributor to economic and social development. To move towards sustainability, industries must be assured of having an adequate supply of water. In return, industries should undertake to see that water used in industrial processes is used efficiently and not returned to nature as untreated waste that pollutes the environment. Technology is important for recycling of water, and a variety of economic and legislative measures can also provide incentives for responsible management.
Access "Promoting Cleaner Industry for Everyone's Benefits", a chapter from the WWDR. [PDF format - 662 KB]
- Lead agency for this chapter
- UNIDO - United Nations Industrial Development Organization
- Collaborating agencies for this chapter
- WHO - World Health Organization
- UNDESA - United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
Access Facts and Figures on Water and Industry.
Water and Energy
 Tremendous increases of energy and water will be required in the near future as the world's population increases from 6 to over 9 billion. Even now, some 2 billion people do not have access to a reliable supply of electricity. Somehow capacity must be increased to meet this demand, and at the same time production and use of energy must be made more efficient. To be sustainable, however, these objectives should be achieved without energy production having any negative impact on either human health or the environment. As for industry, the tools available include technological fixes, development of alternative or renewable energy sources, and a judicious mix of management options that include economic incentives and legislation. Priorities in developed and developing countries may be very different.
Access "Developing Energy for Everyone's Benefits", a chapter from the WWDR. [PDF format - 790 KB]
- Lead agency for this chapter
- UNIDO - United Nations Industrial Development Organization
- Collaborating agencies for this chapter
- WHO - World Health Organization
- UNEP - United Nations Environment Programme
- UN Regional Commissions
- IBRD - International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank)
Access Facts and Figures on Water and Energy.
Managing Risks
 Water related hazards, such as floods, droughts, tropical storms, erosion and various kinds of pollution should be factored into any integrated approach to water resource management and policy. Although it is the world's poor who suffer the most when exposed to such dangers, everyone's security is at stake. One way to minimize risk is to develop more capacity in the monitoring and forecasting of extreme events. With this information, appropriate early warning systems and infrastructure can be installed, and new planning strategies devised. It is also necessary to ensure that climate variability and change have their place in the total picture.
Access "Mitigating Risks and Coping with Uncertainty", a chapter from the WWDR. [PDF format - 931 KB]
- Lead agency for this chapter
- WMO - World Meteorological Organization
- Collaborating agencies for this chapter
- UNDESA - United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
- UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
- WHO - World Health Organization
- UNEP - United Nations Environment Programme
- ISDR - Secretariat of the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction
- CCD - Secretariat of the Convention to Combat Desertification
- CBD - Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity
- UN Regional Commissions
Access Facts and Figures on Managing Risks.
Sharing Water Resources
Other publications by WWAP partner agencies
Striking peace on trouble waters
2001, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
A dossier published by the UNESCO Courier.
|
 Competition over scarce or poorly allocated resources can lead to tension and insecurity. Therefore decision-makers, communities, governments and regions must strive to develop policies that allow for sharing among all stakeholders. Many different interests are at stake and equitable solutions must be found: between cities and rural areas, rich and poor, arid lands and wet lands, public and private, infrastructure and natural environments; mainstream and marginal groups, local stakeholders and centralized authorities. At the regional and international level, many river basin and aquifer authorities are developing integrated approaches that stress cooperation of the shared resource. A UNESCO programme called  (From Potential Conflict to Cooperation Potential) is reviewing case studies of "transboundary" water sharing.
Access "Sharing Water: Defining a Common Interest", a chapter from the WWDR. [PDF format - 1.3 MB]
- Lead agency for this chapter
- UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
- Collaborating agency for this chapter
- UN Regional Commissions
Access Facts and Figures on Sharing Water.
Valuing Water
Other publications by WWAP partner agencies
What price water?
1999, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
A special dossier published by The UNESCO Courier. |
 This whole question is among the most controversial of all the challenges identified in the Ministerial Declaration emerging from the Second World Water Forum in the Hague. In many societies the whole notion of putting a price tag on someting as intrinsically valuable as water is unacceptable. Yet services must be paid for. There is also much disagreement about how to balance the costs of provision and wastewater treatment with the goal of equity and finding ways to meet the needs of poor and vulnerable populations. Creative new partnerships between the public and private sectors should be developed, along with accounting and taxation systems that take full account of environmental and social factors.
Access "Recognizing and Valuing the Many Faces of Water", a chapter from the WWDR. [PDF format - 832 KB]
- Lead agency for this chapter
- UNDESA - United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
- Collaborating agencies for this chapter
- UNECE - United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
- IBRD - International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank)
Access Facts and Figures on Valuing Water.
Ensuring the Knowledge Base
 This target takes account of the whole range of technical and non-technical information and knowledge, and seeks ways for all societies to benefit from their development, exchange and dissemination. National authorities and resource managers need sound scientific data on which to base their projections and decision-making. Stakeholders need access to other kinds of information and educational opportunities if they are to understand and participate in the process as responsible citizens. With the development of modern telecommunications and the global marketplace, it is more than ever necessary to ensure that every community and country play a role in building a more sustainable future.
Access "Ensuring the Knowledge Base: a Collective Responsability", a chapter from the WWDR. [PDF format - 851 KB]
- Lead agencies for this chapter
- UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
- WMO - World Meteorological Organization
- Collaborating agencies for this chapter
- IAEA - International Atomic Energy Agency
- UNDESA - United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
- UNEP - United Nations Environment Programme
- UNU - United Nations University
- IBRD - International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank)
Access Facts and Figures on Ensuring the Knowledge Base.
Governing Water Wisely
Other publications by WWAP partner agencies
Women and the Environment
2004, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
This report dedicates a full chapter to women and water management, illustrated by a large number of examples from all over the world. |
 This challenge area is particularly complex and sensitive. It moves the debate about sustainability beyond water management issues and into processes of political, social and institutional change. Many countries agree that good governance means allowing every sector of society to participate in the decision-making process and that the interests of all stakeholders should be taken into account. However, mechanisms for doing so are not always in place, even if decentralization and the increasing involvement of civil society are worldwide trends. International cooperation and assistance may play a crucial role - particularly in developing countries - by helping to strengthen institutional capacity.
Access "Governing Water Wisely for Sustainable Development", a chapter from the WWDR. [PDF format - 886 KB]
- Lead agency for this chapter
- UNDP - United Nations Development Programme
- WMO - World Meteorological Organization
- Collaborating agencies for this chapter
- UNDESA - United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
- UNECE - United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
| 
UNESCO.ORG
