World Water Day was first celebrated in 1993. (Representational)
World Water Day is observed on March 22, every year, to highlight the importance of water and inspire efforts to conserve it. The day aims to bring attention to the global water crisis and the need to sustainably manage freshwater resources.
World Water Day 2023 theme
This year, World Water Day is focused on “accelerating change to solve the water and sanitation crisis”.
“On this World Day, UNESCO would like to recall the extent to which water, whose cycle is global, is permanently at odds with human boundaries. It is up to us to draw the necessary conclusions and to see it as what it is: a vital and common good of humanity, which must therefore be considered on the scale of humanity,” said Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO.
World Water Day 2023 History
The idea to mark World Water Day was first proposed in 1992 during the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro. The United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution that year and declared that March 22 of every year be celebrated as World Day for Water. It was first marked in 1993.
Significance
World Water Day is a reminder for all of us to value water and contribute towards its conservation. According to the United Nations, dysfunction throughout the water cycle hinders progress on various global issues such as health, hunger, gender equality, jobs, education, industry, and peace. The sustainable development goal (SDG) six is to ensure universal access to drinking water, sanitation and hygiene by 2030.
The latest data suggests that governments will have to work four times faster to meet SDG 6. Today, billions of people, businesses, farms, factories, healthcare centres still don't have access to safe water and toilets. World Water Day aims to bring this global issue to the fore and mobilise people to help solve it.