Water Crisis in Africa

The International Affairs Society of George Washington University asked me to join a panel discussion on 9 April 2012 dealing with the water crisis in Africa. Some fourteen of Africa's 54 countries are experiencing water stress; another 11 are expected to join the group by 2025, when about half of Africa's population will face water stress or scarcity. For the text of my brief remarks, click here.

I referred to two important studies on this topic. One is a massive study by the United Nations Development Program (UNEP) that looks at all the river basins and aquifers in Africa based on research done between 2003 and 2006. It is called Freshwater Under Threat: Vulnerability Assessment of Freshwater Resources to Environmental Change - Africa.

The Office of the Director for National Intelligence published the second study on 2 February 2012. Titled Global Water Security, it does not focus on Africa but provides a solid analysis of global water issues looking ahead to 2040.