The first global water summit in nearly 50 years ended with the appointment of a new UN envoy for water and hundreds of non-binding pledges that, if fulfilled, would move the world closer to universal access to safe drinking water and sanitation.
The three-day summit in New York resulted in nearly 700 commitments to a new Water Action Agenda from local and national governments, non-profits, and some companies. Progress on the jumble of voluntary pledges will be tracked at future UN gatherings. The UN will also establish a new scientific council on water. Overall, organizers expressed satisfaction that governments and representatives from academics, industry, and non-profits had gathered to discuss the often overlooked subject of water and to pledge billions of dollars to improve water security.
However, they acknowledged that more was required than a set of voluntary agreements, such as the 2015 Paris climate accords and the 2022 Montreal biodiversity pact, as well as improved data and an international funding mechanism to protect water supplies. In closing the historic summit, UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged everyone to implement their promises. "All of humanity's future hopes are dependent, in some manner, on charting a new path to manage and conserve water sustainably. It must be at the top of the political priority."
The talks concluded with a wide agreement that water should be regarded as a global common good, and that the world's approach to water should be less siloed, given its connection to the climate crisis, as well as food, energy, and national security. However, without a globally binding agreement, experts fear that promises will dwindle because it will be difficult to hold governments, industry, and financial institutions accountable.
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Technology is a useful servant, but a dangerous master, it was rightly said. Electronic devices have grown into an inevitable part of our daily lives.
