WATER – It’s a Fact of Life!

TURN ON THE TAP THIS WORLD WATER DAY

UNLEASH YOUR INNER FUNDRAISER

QUICKLINKS: Learn about our water projects 

FAST FACTS: 

1. Approximately 500,000 children die every year from diarrhoea caused by unsafe water and poor sanitation.
2. In 2012, malaria killed approximately 627,000 people, 80% of whom were children under the age of 5.
3. 4% of the global disease burden could be lifted by improving water supply, sanitation and hygiene.
4. 748 million people lack access to clean water. Nearly half of these people are in sub-Saharan Africa and over 90% live in rural areas.
5. More than one third of the global population – some 2.5 billion people – do not have a toilet of any kind. 40% of those who lack access live in Southern Asia.
   
6. One billion people still practise open defecation. 90% of these people live in rural areas.
7. Every $1 invested in improved water supply and sanitation can yield from $4 to $12 for the local economy, depending on the type of project.
8. On average, a person in Australia or New Zealand uses about 200 litres of water per day, of which 5-10 litres is for basic survival, i.e. drinking and food preparation.
9. Women and children around the world spend 140 million hours a day collecting water.

And did you know that…

The average person in the developing world uses 10 litres of water every day; the same amount of water we use every time we flush the toilet.

The average distance that women in Africa and Asia walk to collect water is 6 km.

The weight of water that women in Africa and Asia carry on their heads is commonly 20kg, the same as the average airport luggage allowance.

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1. UNICEF, Committing to Child Survival: A Promise Renewed – Progress Report 2014. UNICEF, September 2014.
2. United Nations, The Millennium Development Goals Report 2014, Available at http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/2014%20MDG%20report/MDG%202014%20English%20web.pdf
3. World Health Organisation, Facts and figures on water quality and health. Available at http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/facts_figures/en/
4. World Health Organisation and UNICEF Join Monitoring Programme (JMP). Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation, 2014 update. Available at http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/112727/1/9789241507240_eng.pdf
5. World Health Organisation and UNICEF Join Monitoring Programme (JMP). Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation, 2014 update. Available at http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/112727/1/9789241507240_eng.pdf
6. World Health Organisation, Global Health Observatory data. Facts and figures updated 2012. Available at http://www.who.int/gho/mdg/environmental_sustainability/en/
7. Charity Water. Why water? Facts and figures updated 2015. Available at http://www.charitywater.org/whywater/
8. Save Water, How to save water in the home. Facts and figures updated 2015. Available at http://www.savewater.com.au/how-to-save-water/in-the-home