AT least 3.4 billion people could face water insecurity by 2050 due to an increase in demand for clean water supply, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has warned.
In a forum on Tuesday, ADB Vice President Bambang Susantono said water demand in the Asia-Pacific region could rise by over 50 percent by 2050, a trend which could be fueled by the growth of megacities.
Susantono estimated that Asia and the Pacific requires $800 billion in investment over the 2016 to 2030 period in water and sanitation infrastructure alone.
“Investments are desperately needed. The ADB estimates Asia and the Pacific requires $800 billion in investment over the period 2016-2030 in water and sanitation infrastructure alone,” Susantono said.
“The ADB’s sovereign water portfolio is growing to an estimated $5 billion a year by 2020. But taking it all together with other donors’ financing, much work is still required to fill the financing gap, including crowding in the private investment,” he added. Susantono said water insecurity costs the global economy $500 billion annually with a total drag of 1 percent or more of the global GDP.
ADB President Takehiko Nakao added that in 2016, disaster-related losses in Asia amounted to $87 billion, of which 25 percent was connected to flooding.
Over the past 20 years, Nakao said, Asia has incurred half of the estimated global economic cost of water-related disasters.
“About 300 million people in the Asia and Pacific region do not have improved access to water and 1.7 billion lack access to basic sanitation,” said Nakao. “Innovations and new technologies provide the means to help ADB developing member countries advance their water management, including river basin management, flood control and water pollution; and service delivery such as water supply, sanitation and irrigation.”
The ADB said in its recently approved Strategy 2030 the importance of water was highlighted in the context of climate change, disaster resilience, the water-food-energy nexus, rural development and food security, and livable cities.
The Manila-based multilateral also said water projects, based on Strategy 2030, have been using the latest technologies and innovations to improve development impact.
The ADB is now using satellite remote sensing to quantify agriculture productivity improvement and guide investments in the irrigation sector.
It is also doing substantial work to crowd in private finance and leverage domestic finance, which is another important element of Strategy 2030.
In order to discuss water and the options that can make the region more water secure, over 800 participants gathered at the ADB headquarters in Manila for the opening of the Asia Water Forum 2018, focusing on “Information, Innovation, and Technology.”
The forum—the fifth held at the ADB headquarters since 2002—provides a platform to share knowledge and experiences to help ensure water security for the Asia and Pacific region.
Since its founding in 1966, the ADB has spent a total of $45.88 billion on water projects. The ADB’s active water sector operations amount to nearly $14 billion and this is growing—another $14 billion in investments is planned between now and 2020.
The ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 67 members—48 from the region. In 2017 the ADB operations totaled $32.2 billion, including $11.9 billion in cofinancing.