Water Supply and Health

A safe, reliable, affordable, and easily accessible water supply is essential for good health. Yet, for several decades, about a billion people in developing countries have not had a safe and sustainable water supply. It has been estimated that a minimum of 7.5 litres of water per person per day is required in the home for drinking, preparing food, and personal hygiene, the most basic requirements for water; at least 50 litres per person per day is needed to ensure all personal hygiene, food hygiene, domestic cleaning, and laundry needs 1. This domestic water consumption is dwarfed by the demands of agriculture and ecosystems, even in wealthy countries where per capita domestic water consumption greatly exceeds these figures 2. To cover all these requirements and to avoid water stress, experts generally agree that about 1,000 cubic metres of freshwater per capita per year is needed.