The United Nations World Water Development Report 2021: Valuing Water

The 2021 edition of the United Nations World Water Development Report focuses on valuing water. There is enough water for all provided we use and manage it efficiently. But we don’t. We invest too little, and ineffectively. We use too much water, creating scarcities. Quality is suffering and so is the environment.

The value we place on water varies, depending upon who is using it, and why. Value can be a guide to what our goals should be, what actions are needed, and where we should invest. Many of our problems arise because we don’t value water highly enough; all too often water is not valued at all.
This report explains various approaches to valuing water for environmental considerations, water-related infrastructure, drinking water, sanitation and hygiene. It looks at valuation issues in food and agriculture, business, industry, energy and financing. And it highlights the perspectives of different value systems and cultures, and associated social and gender-based considerations.