Water for Life Decade kicks off worldwide to spur action on water shortages
By Yinka Adeyemi, Communication Officer, ECA
22 March 2004

The “Water for Life" Decade 2005-2015 kicks of today in countries all over the world to call attention to water shortages and the need to halve the proportion of people who do not have sustainable access to safe drinking water by 2015.

The United Nations General Assembly in February 2004 declared the period from 2005 to 2015 the International Decade for Action, "Water for Life".

In its resolution, the Assembly called for greater focus on water issues and the promotion of international cooperation and partnerships for achieving various international water targets.

In a video address to commemorate the launch of the decade, the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan called for better international response to water shortages.

"We need to increase water efficiency especially in agriculture. We need to free women and girls from the daily chore of holding water often over a great distance. We need to make sanitation a priority. And we must show that water resources need not be a source of conflict," the Secretary General said.