Every March 22nd, the world focuses its attention on the importance of water.
For this year’s World Water Day celebrations, the theme, much like the ones that have gone before, delves on the important matters such as the pressing issues on water security and availability.
“Leaving no one behind,” says United Nations Water, which coordinates the efforts of UN entities and international organizations working on water and sanitation issues, adapts the central promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development that “as sustainable development progresses, everyone must benefit.”
Focusing on Sustainable Development Goal 6 which aims to provide water for all by 2030, WWD 2019 certainly taps its overall goal by leaving no one behind this year and a decade to come leading up to their projected goal.
But today, billions of people are still living without safe water, and according to UN Water, households, schools, workplaces, farms and factories still struggle to survive and thrive.
According to the international organization, marginalized groups – women, children, refugees, indigenous peoples, disabled people and many others – are often overlooked, and sometimes face discrimination, as they try to access and manage the safe water they need.
Other factors, such as environmental degradation, climate change, population growth, conflict, forced displacement and migration flows can also disproportionately affect marginalized groups through impacts on water.
This year’s activities is about tackling the water crisis by addressing the reasons why so many people are being left behind and what can be done to reach them.
It is our basic human right to water and entitles everyone, without discrimination. It is also everyone’s right to sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic use; which includes water for drinking, personal sanitation, washing of clothes, food preparation, and personal and household hygiene, according to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Whoever and wherever you may be water is our human right, this underpins public health and, therefore, “critical to sustainable development and a stable and prosperous world.”
UN-Water adds that we cannot move forward as a global society while so many people are living without safe water.
So for this year, and the years ahead, let’s band together to bring this valuable resource to all individuals regardless of any condition.