The world is increasingly turning its attention to the issue of water scarcity. Many countries face water scarcity as a fundamental challenge to their economic and social development; by 2030 over a third of the world population will be living in river basins that will have to cope with significant water stress, including many of the countries and regions that drive global economic growth. Across the globe, policy makers, civil society and the business sector are increasingly becoming aware of the challenge facing global water resources, and the need to carefully
manage these resources. Progress has been limited, however, and overall too slow. One missing piece has been the lack of a rigorous analytical framework to facilitate decision-making and investment into the sector, particularly on measures of efficiency and water productivity. The report Charting Our Water Future was developed to take a first step in providing greater clarity on the scale, costs and tradeoffs of solutions to water scarcity. It is the result of a year-long collaboration involving IFC (a member of the World Bank Group), McKinsey & Company,
The Coca-Cola Company, Barilla, New Holland Agriculture, Nestlé, SABMiller plc, Standard Chartered Bank and Syngenta AG, and has relied on the input of over 300 specialists and public sector practitioners as well as the consistent guidance of a group of expert advisors. We hope this is a useful contribution that can advance solutions and elevate the debate for what is an issue of critical importance to all.