The urgent global water crisis

The urgent global water crisis | GZERO World

Water is something none of us can live without, but billions of people take for granted. On GZERO World, UN-Water Chair Gilbert Houngbo and Ian Bremmer discuss the global water crisis, the impact of climate change, and solutions for providing future genereations with better access to clean, drinkable water.

Four billion people around the world experience at least a month of water scarcity each year, which is a problem Houngbo attributes to lack of resources, a rapidly changing climate, and bad government policy. To ensure that those most vulnerable to water stress don't get left behind, Houngbo emphasizes the need for investment in water-related infrastructure and technology, particularly in agriculture, which uses up to 75% of the world's fresh water supply.

"We as a global society have taken water for granted," Houngbo says, and water management must become "everyone's business." Houngbo also highlights the need to develop reliable metrics to measure progress in addressing water scarcity, especially in rural areas, which have some of the biggest problems.

Despite the severity of the problem, Houngbo remains optimistic that society can meet the global water challenge with policies that ensure access to basic water services, encourage water reuse, and minimize pollution risks.

Note: This interview appeared in a GZERO World episode, "The uncomfortable truth about water scarcity," on March 27, 2023.

More from GZERO Media

President Donald Trump speaks to the media as he leaves the White House for a trip to Florida on April 3, 2025.
Andrew Leyden/NurPhoto via Reuters

Stocks have plummeted, layoffs have begun, and confusion has metastasized about the bizarre method the United States used to calculate its tariff formula. But Donald Trump says it’s “going very well."

African National Congress (ANC) members of parliament react after South African lawmakers passed the budget's fiscal framework in Cape Town, South Africa, April 2, 2025.
REUTERS/Esa Alexander

The second largest party in South Africa’s coalition, the business-friendly Democratic Alliance, launched a legal challenge on Thursday to block a 0.5% VAT increase in the country’s new budget, raising concerns that the fragile government could collapse.

The Israeli Air Force launched an airstrike on Thursday, targeting a building in the Mashrou Dummar area of Damascus. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant confirmed Israel's responsibility for the attack, which resulted in one fatality.
Rami Alsayed via Reuters Connect
A man leaves the U.S. headquarters of the social media company TikTok in Culver City, California, U.S. January 17, 2025.
REUTERS/David Swanson

Remember the TikTok ban? The new deadline President Donald Trump set for the app to find an American buyer or be banned from US app stores, midnight Saturday, is rapidly approaching.

National Security Advisor Mike Waltz looks on as he sits next to US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in the Oval Office on March 13, 2025.

REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein

Someone needs to take National Security Advisor Michael Waltz’s phone out of his hand.

President Donald Trump holds a "Foreign Trade Barriers" document as he delivers remarks on tariffs in the Rose Garden at the White House on April 2, 2025.

REUTERS/Carlos Barria

Donald Trump’s much-anticipated “liberation day” tariff announcement on Wednesday is the biggest disruption to global trade in decades, so the political, diplomatic, and economic impacts will take time to become clear.

Elon Musk waves to the crowd as he exits the stage during a town hall on Sunday, March 30, 2025, at the KI Convention Center in Green Bay, Wis.

Tork Mason/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin via Reuters

Donald Trump is reportedly telling people that he and Elon Musk have agreed that Musk’s work in the US government will soon be done. Politico’s story broke just as Musk seems to have discovered the electoral limits of his charm.