UN urges world not to take water for granted

Agriculture accounts for over 70% of planet’s freshwater withdrawals, Food and Agriculture Organization head tells Rome Water Dialogue

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) – The UN on Wednesday urged the world to stop taking water for granted, underlining the need for intensified efforts towards a resilient, sustainable water-secure, and food-secure future.

In his opening remarks at the two-day Rome Water Dialogue, the second of its kind, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Director-General Qu Dongyu stressed: "We must stop taking water for granted."

As agriculture accounts for more than 70% of the planet’s freshwater withdrawals, Qu said: “By increasing efficiency, reducing negative impacts and reusing wastewater, agriculture holds the solutions to the global water crisis, as well as the key to achieving global water and food security.”

He also underlined the need for a “4Rs” approach based on the principles of reduce, reuse, recycle, and replace, to effectively address the severe water challenges mostly due to water-related natural disasters.

The water-related disasters resulted in direct economic costs of more than $200 billion in 2021 alone, he noted.

The dialogue focuses on integrated water resource management for agricultural and food security.

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