Clean water & sanitation

Goal 6: Clean water & sanitation

Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

Too many people still lack access to safely managed water supplies and sanitation facilities. Water scarcity, flooding and lack of proper wastewater management also hinder social and economic development. Increasing water efficiency and improving water management are critical to balancing the competing and growing water demands from various sectors and users.

Relative likelihood of hydro-political interactions

Tensions over freshwater use and management in international river basins are one of the main concerns in political relations. They may exacerbate existing tensions, increase regional instability and social unrest. Hydro-political interactions are here defined as episodes of cooperation or conflict...

Africa is home to the longest river in the world -the Nile- and other major rivers like the Congo and the Niger. This layer shows the official boundaries of river (sub-)basins in Africa (approved and used by the FAO). The downloadable dataset contains the boundaries of the major hydrological basins...

Understanding why and where humanitarian disasters are likely to occur is a fundamental step in saving lives and promoting sustainable development. The INFORM Risk Index is a global, open-source risk assessment for humanitarian crises and disasters. It can support decisions about prevention...

INFORM Risk Index: Lack of coping capacity (infrastructure component)

Understanding why and where humanitarian disasters are likely to occur is a fundamental step in saving lives and promoting sustainable development. The coping capacity dimension of the INFORM Risk Index (global risk assessment for humanitarian crises and disasters) measures the ability of a country...

Surface water affects many aspects of our world: the exchange of heat, gas and water vapour between the planet's surface and atmosphere. Water is the engine behind the distribution, movement and migration of Earth's plant and animal life and is just as essential for humans. It affects our capacity...

Water Transitions in Reservoir (1984-2018)

Freshwater, in sufficient quantity and quality, is essential for all aspects of life and fundamental to sustainable development. Yet water-related ecosystems are threatened by human activities (flow alteration; loss of connectivity; pollution; habitat degradation and loss; overexploitation of...

Annual gross water loss vs annual energy production of hydropower plants (mcm/GWh)

In 2016, a total of 42 billion cubic meters of water was lost through evaporation in hydropower reservoirs in Africa. A huge amount compared to the 1.2 billion cubic meters lost from all the other fuel types combined. In the same period, hydropower accounted for 15% of Africa’s total energy...

Annual water loss through evaporation from hydropower reservoirs (mcm/year)

Dam-induced impoundment of water in hydropower reservoirs usually causes enlarged water surfaces compared to the waterbody extent prior to dam construction (with the exception of reservoirs constrained by geomorphologic features, i.e. canyons). The annual gross water loss from reservoirs is...

Freshwater, in sufficient quantity and quality, is essential for all aspects of life and fundamental to sustainable development. Turbidity is an indicator of water clarity, quantifying the haziness of the water and acting as an indicator of underwater light availability. Light penetration may or may...

Freshwater, in sufficient quantity and quality, is essential for all aspects of life and fundamental to sustainable development. Yet water-related ecosystems are threatened by human activities. Eutrophication is a common threat: the excessive growth of algae resulting in oxygen depletion. It can be...