C O N T E N T S - Physical Land Resources - Vrije Universiteit Brussel

More can be read at: http://www.unesco.org/water/water_celebrations/WATER FOR LIFE:UN proclaims international water decade 2005-2015At its 58th session, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly adopted a draft resolutionproclaiming the period from 2005 to 2015 as the International Decade for Action, "Waterfor Life", starting on World Water Day, 22 Mar 2005. The goal of the Decade is "a greaterfocus on water-related issues, with emphasis on women as managers of water [.] to helpto achieve internationally agreed water-related goals", i.e.: to halve by 2015 theproportion of people who are unable to reach or afford safe drinking water and who donot have access to basic sanitation. Coordination of activities for the Decade will be in thehands of the UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs (since 1 Sep2003, José Antonio Ocampo of Colombia). More than 20 years ago, the UN declared1981-1990 as the International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade. The aimthen was to provide safe drinking water and adequate sanitation systems for all people by1991.Web address: United Nations General Assembly 58th Session, http://www.un.org/ga/58/;Water resources in the United Nations system,http://www.un.org/partners/civil_society/m-water.shtmlSee also UN General Assembly document A/58/485, 15 Dec 2003,http://ods-ddsny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N03/657/51/PDF/N0365751.pdf?OpenElementContact: UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, mailto:esa@un.org;(UN, 23 Dec 2003, http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2003/ga10224.doc.htm;UN, 9 Dec 2003, http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2003/gaef3068.doc.htm)- 83 -