How Much Do You Know About Water, The Liquid Gold

According to a report by UNICEF and WHO, approximately 2.2 billion people around the world don’t have safely managed drinking water at home. For many, water sources are far from home and women and girls are typically expected to find water. This leads to them opting for dirty water which exposes them to fatal illnesses and contributes to disempowerment and lost productivity.

Without access to nearby improved water sources, over 200 million people spend over 30 minutes per round trip searching for clean water. This model is unsustainable, because in most cases, one person can only carry one 20-25 litre container on their head at a time. For example, fetching 100 litres of water using a 20-litre container will require over two hours of non-stop water collection.

With just 19% of the population having access to basic water services, Eritrea has the least access to clean water close to home. 80.7% of the population lack adequate water and sanitation, often leading people to open water sources that are contaminated. Poor farming practices, deforestation, climate change, poverty, conflict, lack of infrastructure, and an ailing economy all exacerbate the water scarcity.

31% of the schools in the world lack access to basic water and 34% have no decent toilets. This water scarcity is especially hard on women and girls who require sanitary facilities. As a result, the women and girls sometimes skip or drop out of school entirely due to lack of water and decent toilets.

An estimated 297,000 children under five years of age (over 800 per day) die from diarrhoea linked to unsafe drinking water, poor hygiene, and poor sanitation. Most of these children are from developing nations.

A person needs around 50 litres of water every day to ensure that basic needs are met while keeping public health risks low.