Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
Around the world, billions of people lack access to safely managed drinking water and sanitation services, posing a serious risk to their health and entrenching poverty.
Goal 6 and the environment
Water is vital for life. Clean freshwater is necessary for drinking and sanitation, providing for our crops, livestock, and industry, and creating and sustaining the ecosystems on which all life depends.
Access to clean drinking water and modern sanitation services is fundamental for human health and economic development. However, environmental degradation in various forms is reducing access to these essentials. Around 1.9 billion people live in potentially severely water-scarce areas. By 2050, this figure could increase to around 3 billion people. Many freshwater sources are drying up, becoming more polluted, threatening the lives and livelihoods of countless people around world, and deepening poverty.
To achieve Goal 6, the world must reduce freshwater pollution by eliminating dumping and minimizing the release of hazardous chemicals.
As the climate crisis takes hold, communities must also be supported as they learn to better manage increasingly scarce water resources. By making risk-informed decisions, they can increase climate resilience, improve ecosystem health and reduce the risk of water-related disasters.
UNEP is the custodian of the following SDG 6 indicators:
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6.3.2 Proportion of bodies of water with good ambient water quality
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6.5.1 Degree of integrated water resources management implementation
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6.6.1 Change in the extent of water-related ecosystems over time
UNEP’s Work on Goal 6
As the global population grows, so do the demands for water—for drinking, sanitation, farming and energy production, among many other uses. At the same time, human activity and the climate crisis are disrupting natural water cycles, while pollution is putting freshwater ecosystems under pressure.
UNEP helps countries protect and restore freshwater ecosystems to sustain their services for generations to come. To do this, UNEP collects data and reports on the status of water quality and the health of freshwater ecosystems; provides training and policy advice to help countries and communities better manage their water resources, especially in the face of the climate crisis and supports innovative pilot projects, including nature-based solutions, to protect and restore freshwater sources. UNEP also brings together a wide array of partners, including Member States, to spur action on water-related issues.
Global Environment Monitoring System for Freshwater
The platform provides the global community with data on the state of freshwater resources, supporting scientific research and helping governments make sound decisions about their lakes, rivers and aquifers.
UNEP-DHI Centre on Water and the Environment
Founded in 1996, this centre of expertise is dedicated to improving the management, development and use of freshwater resources from the local to the global level.
The effort is helping countries better manage wastewater, some 80 per cent of which is discharged into waterways without being treated. Formed in 2013, it brings together United Nations agencies, non-governmental organizations, academia, the private sector and development banks.
It’s the latest comprehensive analysis of where we are with SDG 6. Key findings on page 75.
Integrated Water Resource Management Portal
This site tracks global progress on implementation of integrated water resources management and SDG indicator 6.5.1.
Measuring Progress: Water-Related Ecosystems and the SDGs
This report evaluates progress on the 92 environment-related SDG indicators and the connections between those related to water, and society and the economy.
Gemstat Global Water Quality Database
The Global Freshwater Quality Database GEMStat provides scientifically-sound data and information on the state and trend of global inland water quality.
