World Water Day is observed every year on March 22 in order to highlight the importance of drinking water.
The theme of each day focuses on topics relevant to clean Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), which is in line with the targets of Sustainable Development Goal 6.
World Water Day 2023 theme is about accelerating change to solve the water and sanitation crisis.
This article will give details regarding World Water Day within the context of the IAS Exam.
Candidates can refer to the links given below in line with the UPSC Syllabus for the prelims and mains examination:
Background of the World Water Day
The proposal for World Water Day was first proposed in Agenda 21 of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development. In December 1992, the United Nations General Assembly passed the resolution to declare March 22 of each year as World Water Day.
Thus it was on March 22, 1993 first World Water Day was observed. The UN World Water Development Report (WWDR) is released each year around World Water Day.
UN-Water is the convener for World Water Day and selects the theme for each year in consultation with UN organizations that share an interest in that year’s focus.
Aspirants must go through the video on World Water Day at (11:37 minutes) for the latest context on the topic-
Activities during World Water Day
Non-governmental organizations active in the WASH sector, such as UNICEF, WaterAid and Water and Sanitation for the Urban Poor (WSUP), use the day to raise public awareness, get media attention for water issues and inspire action. Activities have included releasing publications and films, as well as organizing round tables, seminars and expositions.
End Water Poverty, a global civil society coalition with 250 partner organizations, sponsors Water Action Month each year and offers an event-planning guidebook.
The UN World Water Development Report (WWDR) is released each year on World Water Day. Information related to the annual theme gives decision-makers tools to implement sustainable use of water resources.
Themes for World Water Day
The following table highlights the themes for World Water Day in the ensuing years
World Water Day (1994 – 2004)
| 1994 | Caring for our Water Resources is Everybody’s Business |
| 1995 | Women and Water |
| 1996 | Water for Thirsty Cities |
| 1997 | The World’s Water: Is there enough? |
| 1998 | Groundwater– The Invisible Resource. |
| 1999 | Everyone Lives Downstream |
| 2000 | Water for the 21st century |
| 2001 | Water for Health |
| 2002 | Water for Development |
| 2003 | Water for Future |
| 2004 | Water and Disasters |
World Water Day (2005 – 2014)
| 2005 | Water for Life Decade 2005–2015. |
| 2006 | Water and Culture. |
| 2007 | Coping With Water Scarcity. |
| 2008 | Sanitation |
| 2009 | Trans Waters. |
| 2010 | Clean Water for a Healthy World |
| 2011 | Water for cities |
| 2012 | Water and Food Security |
| 2013 | International Year of Cooperation |
| 2014 | Water and Energy |
World Water Day (2015 – 2023)
| 2015 | Water and Sustainable Development |
| 2016 | Better Water, Better Jobs |
| 2017 | Why Waste Water? |
| 2018 | Nature for Water |
| 2019 | Leaving No One Behind |
| 2020 | Water and Climate Change |
| 2021 | Valuing Water |
| 2022 | Groundwater: Making the Invisible Visible |
| 2023 | Accelerating change to solve the water and sanitation crisis |
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Impact of World Water Day
As per a recent report released by WHO in 2022-23, 1.4 million people die annually and 74 million will have their lives shortened by diseases related to poor water, sanitation and hygiene.
Every year, World Water Day campaign messages and publications reach millions of people through social media, dedicated websites and other channels. In 2021, the World Water Day public campaign invited people to take part in a social media conversation about the value of water. More than 6,000 public conversations took place in over 140 countries on social media from mid-November 2020 to mid-February 2021.
In 2017, 700 individual events were held in 110 countries and there were over 500,000 authors on social media using the hashtag ‘#WorldWaterDay’. In 2018, there was a 25% increase in both the number of website visits and the maximum potential reach on social media largely due to celebrity support and a coordinated communications approach across the United Nations.
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