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i've traveled a bit through developing nations, and i've observed that access to fresh, clean water is a huge concern for both governments and individuals. i've also noticed that, accordingly, governments of developing nations are putting increasing amounts of money into water projects.
around the time of the last World Water Forum (March 2009), I read the following:
-Some 30 countries have a constitutional or legal provision ensuring individuals' access to water, up from a handful a few years ago
-China is struggling just to provide its rising population with enough water. Rapid industrial growth and urbanization have taken a toll on the country's water supply, with underground sources quickly drying up. Water usage in the country has quintupled over the past 50 years, forcing China to turn to massive and environmentally unfriendly engineering projects – such as diverting water from rivers – in order to meet demand.
-An estimated 1 billion people worldwide lack access to safe drinking water and United Nations officials warn that the situation could get worse if current patterns of water use continue. "Unless we change our water consumption behaviors, we will face a major crisis in fresh water," Koichiro Matsura, director-general of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), said at the forum, following the launch of a new UN report on the global water situation.
-Worldwide annual water-related investments are estimated at $400 billion to $500 billion. In some countries, like India, rights to water resources have been sold outright to private companies, which use them for their own needs or sell the water to individual users.
-Some 18% of the world population lacks access to potable water, and demand is expected to rise by 40% in the next 20 years. The UN says that $11 billion a year is needed for water infrastructure investment, and $15 billion of the US stimulus package will be similarly spent.