Water for people.pdf - WHO Thailand Digital Repository

T H E W O R L D ’ S W A T E R C R I S I S : F I T T I N G T H E P I E C E S T O G E T H E R / 5 1 9What Progress? Looking at the Pastand towards the FutureProgress since Rio: where do we stand?It is always difficult to generalize when drawing conclusions aboutmeeting progress towards targeted goals. There is no single modelthat describes all situations, as the pilot case studies clearly show.One picture emerges at the global level, but other very differentscenarios emerge at ground level within the context of a particularplace and specific circumstances. For this reason it is useful toreview what individual countries themselves have to report. Anevaluation of national progress in implementing Agenda 21 wascompleted by the CSD immediately prior to the World Summit onSustainable Development in 2002. It focuses on eleven measureswithin six themes that were cross-cutting throughout theProgramme Areas of Chapter 18, which called for a concerted effortto develop more integrated approaches to water management andfor a stronger focus on the needs of the poor. These programmeareas are decision-making, programme and projects, education,information, financing and cooperation.In total, 129 of 190 countries have reported, on at least some ofthe eleven measures (see figure 23.3). The regional breakdowndemonstrates the continental variations in reporting. Participation isstrongest in Europe and North America, with 90 percent of countriesreporting, and weakest in Africa, with reports from only 50 percent ofcountries. For our purposes, progress is defined as either action thathas been implemented or else as action that is underway. Progress isexpressed as number of countries within the region reporting progressas a percentage of the total number of all countries within the region.Countries that have not reported are considered as not having madeprogress, a conclusion that may not reflect reality in cases where thereis a weakness in reporting rather than in implementation.Progress reported by individual countries against each of theeleven measures is presented in table 23.2, with countries groupedby region. Again, the distinction between ‘implemented’ and ‘inprogress of implementation’ is retained.Between a quarter and a third of all countries have reportedthat implementation has been completed for the significant majorityof the eleven measures, an estimate that rises to between one thirdand one half when implementation and implementation in progressare added together. However, it is not the same countries reportingon progress across all measures. Only ‘establishment of acoordinating body on freshwater’ is reported as more widelyimplemented. The figure and table demonstrate the significantvariations in reporting, the degree of progress and actionscompleted or still underway, variations that exist between differentregions, between countries and between individual initiatives.Eight countries report implementation of all eleven actions:Australia, Barbados, Greece, Finland, Republic of Korea, Norway,Singapore and Spain. A further fourteen countries report that alleleven actions have either been implemented or are in process ofimplementation: Algeria, Belgium, Croatia, Cuba, India, Israel, Jordan,Liechtenstein, Mexico, Monaco, Mongolia, Poland, Slovenia andVenezuela.Complementary to this evaluation, the report of the WaterAction Group of the World Water Council contains many hundreds ofindividual actions that have been taken since the Second WorldWater Forum.Progress towards targets: are we on track?At Rio in 1992 there was prior agreement that certain actions wereto be accomplished by the turn of the century. These includederadication of Guinea worm disease by 1999, access to 40 litres perday of safe water to all urban residents by 2000, national actionprogrammes and water resource assessment services in place by2000. Among these, best progress has been made in the reductionof Guinea worm infestations. The urban water supply target has notbeen met, and accomplishment of action programmes andassessment services is confined to a few countries. The Frameworkfor Action, formulated at The Hague in 2000, contains several furtheractions with impending timeframes. Among them are the following:■ The economic value of water should be recognized and fullyreflected in national policies and strategies by 2002.■ The implementation of comprehensive IWRM policies andstrategies should be underway in 75 percent of countries by2005.■ National standards that ensure the integrity of ecosystemsshould be instituted in all countries by 2005.