While COVID-19 has focussed attention on lack of clean water for millions people to wash their hands, clean water and proper sanitation are also essential for healthy food and farming. Here, Rick Johnston from the World Health Organisation explains the key findings from the WHO/UNICEF report ‘Progress on household drinking water, sanitation and hygiene 2000 – 2020’. While there has been some progress towards achieving universal access to basic water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) service there is still a long way to go for everyone to have access, and for untreated waste water to stop contaminating agricultural production. Without much greater effort the chances of meeting the Sustainable Development Goals for both water and food are slim.
You can read the press release about the report here and download the full report here