page_title: Water security
section_title: Most affected countries
hierarchical_section_title: Water security / Most affected countries
caption_attribution_description: Soweto, South Africa Photograph taken: May 2005 E. Muench
context_page_description: Water security has been defined as "the reliable availability of an acceptable quantity and quality of water for health, livelihoods and production, coupled with an acceptable level of water-related risks". It is realised to the degree that water scarcity is non-existent, or has been decreased or eliminated, and to the degree that floods and contamination of freshwater supplies are non-threatening.
  "Sustainable development will not be achieved without a water secure world. A water secure world integrates a concern for the intrinsic value of water with a concern for its use for human survival and well-being. A water secure world harnesses water's productive power and minimises its destructive force. Water security also means addressing environmental protection and the negative effects of poor management. It is also concerned with ending fragmented responsibility for water and integrating water resources management across all sectors—finance, planning, agriculture, energy, tourism, industry, education and health. A water secure world reduces poverty, advances education, and increases living standards.
context_section_description: Based on the map published by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), the countries and regions suffering most water stress are North Africa, the Middle East, India, Central Asia, China, Chile, Colombia, South Africa, Canada and Australia.
  Water scarcity is also increasing in South Asia.
caption: Communal tap (standpost) for drinking water in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa
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