The alarm clock rings, we get up and go to the bathroom. We take a shower, use the toilet and look forward to breakfast. We quickly fill the coffee machine with water and coffee powder - and the pleasant smell of fresh coffee hits our nostrils. While we take the first sip, we have already used about 90 litres of water that day - as much as many families around the world do not have for the whole day.
Although two thirds of the earth is covered with water, there are many regions where there is great water poverty. One reason for this is that only about one third of this water is drinkable at all. A second reason is the very uneven distribution of water on our planet. In fact, over 2.2 billion people do not have regular access to clean water. According to UNICEF (2022), every fifth child worldwide suffers from water poverty. Rural regions in Africa are particularly affected. In Tanzania, around 73% of the rural population has no clean drinking water and only 17% has access to sanitation. A lack of clean water inevitably leads to inadequate health care and is directly reflected in the number of diseases such as diarrhoea and cholera. As a result, more than 700 children die every day worldwide from diseases that could be prevented through adequate hygiene.
Even though water supply has been improved in some parts of the world through the expansion of sewage systems, for example, the problem is likely to become more acute in the future: Rising temperatures, lack of precipitation and the associated persistent droughts and falling groundwater levels will lead to an increase in water shortages worldwide. The WMO fears that more than five billion people will be affected by 2050. According to the UN, the world population will then have grown to 9.7 billion people. This means a lack of drinking water for more than half of humanity.
International World Water Day is therefore an opportunity to take a closer look at water, an extremely precious and expensive resource. With this year's motto "Groundwater - making the invisible visible", the United Nations wants to draw global attention to the importance of our groundwater and make people more aware of it. This is because it is particularly affected by climate change. In some countries, for example, rising sea levels are leading to an increase in the salt content of groundwater. In many places, contamination by pesticides, for example, is worsening its quality. However, it is urgently needed for drinking water supplies, irrigation and daily water requirements.
The water in the Nyangao region, around the St. Walburg’s Hospitalis pumped up from a depth of around 40 meters and is not actually suitable as drinking water due to its high salt content. Nevertheless, many local residents drink it every day, as the alternative of fresh bottled water is often too expensive.
It is to be hoped that today's World Water Day will also counteract future water problems worldwide. Maybe it will help to make us think a little about our morning ritual and act sustainably; we won't let the shower run quite so long, and we'll turn off the tap when we don't need it. Because let's face it, that cup of coffee tastes a lot better when you've already made a small contribution to improving the health of people around the world in the first hour of the day?
