UN water summit ends with global action plan

A global action plan with no less than 700 own commitments is the result of the United Nations Water Summit in New York. The commitments come from governments as well as from non-profit organizations and some companies. For example, 150 states support the appointment of a UN special representative for water. In addition, a scientific committee on this subject will be set up.

Federal Environment Minister Steffi Lemke was pleased with the end of the three-day meeting. The action agenda is a milestone and the basis for a trend break in global water policy, the Greens politician said on Friday. “One thing is clear: we need to move faster than before to protect our water supply globally and secure long-term supply.”

According to Johannes Cullmann, some $750 billion (equivalent to €695 billion) will flow into protecting the global water supply in the future. So said the Vice-President for Water and Science President of the General Assembly on Friday of the ARD “Tagesschau”.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres had made the countries responsible for the fight against drinking water shortages. All hope for humanity depends on charting a new course: “It depends on realizing the historic inclusive and action-oriented commitments made by Member States and others at this conference”.

The UN water conference has been going on since Wednesday. It was the first major UN meeting since 1977 to focus solely on water. The United Nations had sounded the alarm about a global water crisis: the water cycle had been broken, ecosystems had been destroyed and groundwater had been polluted. Two billion people, one in four, do not have adequate access to clean water. And the global shortage of drinking water will continue to increase.

Nearly 7,000 people attended, including a dozen heads of state and government. However, critics denounced that some parts of the world were much better represented than others. Many communities from the Global South, particularly affected by water scarcity, were not adequately represented due to visa barriers or financial hurdles.

Still, the meeting in New York was a necessary wake-up call, the World Resources Institute said at the conference. Some of the voluntary commitments could represent a turning point and have an impact on the development of drinking water. (sda/dpa)