This year marks the tenth anniversary of the Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act, named after a U.S. politician who foresaw the global water crisis and understood its implications. He led a push in the U.S. Congress to increase access to water and sanitation for the most vulnerable communities around the world.
Recalling a visit he made to the dying Sea of Aral, Senator Simon feared the coming of a “looming, waterless storm,” with rising levels of disease and displacement, of growing instability at home and abroad, said USAID Administrator Samantha Power.
Though Senator Simon did not live to see his efforts come to fruition, in 2005, the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act passed into law. Its purpose was to “make access to safe water and sanitation for developing countries a specific policy objective of the United States foreign assistance programs.”
Nine years later, with the passage of the Water for the World Act, it was updated to include evolving global Water, Sanitation and Hygiene programs. The U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, was tasked with implementing it.
“All told, since this incredible Water for the World Act became law, USAID has helped 42 million people access clean water, and 38 million people access sanitation services,” said Administrator Power.
Nonetheless, today, lack of access to water causes unprecedented crises all over the world. “From 2010 to 2019, water was a trigger for almost 300 conflicts across the world,” said Administrator Power. And that’s just the start. The United Nations estimates water scarcity will lead to the displacement and migration of close to 700 million people by the end of this decade.
As part of U.S. Assistance on water and sanitation, since 2008 USAID has helped 70 million people gain access to drinking water services, helped provide nearly 55 million people with sustainable sanitation and, since 2018, mobilized $590 million in new funding to sanitation and water sectors.
“But now is not the time to rest. Water shortages ... are an even bigger challenge as extreme weather and heat affect so many communities that actually had not to worry about water scarcity so much in the past,” said Administrator Power. “We have to reaffirm our commitment to promoting global water security, helping every person realize that universal right to clean water, sanitation, and hygiene.”
