LONDON, Dec 7 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Water scarcity affects almost half the world’s population, a number that is expected to rise in the coming decades even as global warming, population growth, urbanisation and rising agricultural needs put further strain on supplies.
The issue was on Friday’s agenda in the Polish town of Katowice, where representatives of more than 190 countries have come together for U.N.-sponsored climate talks.
Following is information on some of the countries most threatened by water scarcity.
More than half of Niger’s 20 million people do not have access to clean water.
Only one in 10 people has access to a decent toilet.
About 10 percent of Pakistan’s population does not have access to clean water.
In 1947, the figure stood at about 5,000 cubic metres per person.
Today it is 1,000 cubic metres.
Pakistan has more glaciers than any other country outside the polar region.
In Sudan, a country of 43 million people, only 2 percent of water is available for domestic use.