Unless we change the way we live, consume and produce, there won’t be enough clean water to sustain all of us in the future.
At the Watershed Conference, I spoke to three deeply intertwined aspects of water: · The first is Ecological.
We need to learn much better how to share this finite resource amongst ourselves, as well as with all other species on Earth.
· Spiritual, cultural and social.
Water is also central to the flourishing of all human cultures.
And finally, water is the common currency that connects all sectors of the economy and most of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
We then need to translate ‘shared value for water’ into water management systems that can deliver efficient, affordable, sustainable and inclusive services, while at the same time safeguard the ecological integrity of the resource.
At the end of a very long day, I reaffirmed our commitment to advancing this global dialogue on the value of water on behalf of the World Bank.
In two weeks, on April 20, we will also be cohosting the 2017 Sanitation and Water for All High Level Meetings, during the IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings.
Finance Ministers, global thought leaders and civil society representatives will come together to search for solutions to close the financing gap for universal access to water and sanitation, which is estimated to be $114 billion per year until 2030.