The world is facing a looming water crisis and actions must be taken now to better manage this scarce resource, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Thursday.
"The challenge of securing safe and plentiful water for all is one of the most daunting challenges faced by the world today," Ban told a session of the World Economic Forum annual meeting.
"Our experiences tell us that environmental stress, due to lack of water, may lead to conflict, and would be greater in poor nations," Ban said.
According to the UN chief, population growth will make the problem of water scarcity worse, so will climate change.
"As the global economy grows, so will its thirst. Many more conflicts lie just over the horizon," he warned.
Water scarcity is a problem for all countries, poor or rich, he said, calling for innovative and global approaches to tackle the problem.
UN statistics show that about 1.2 billion people, or 20 percent of the world population, now live in water stressed areas with the figure expected to reach 3 billion by 2025.
Source: Xinhua
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