History illustrates that while water can be a source of political tension and conflict, in modern times, access to the lifesaving resource \u2013 as well as sanitation \u2013 can be\u00a0an important tool\u00a0in fostering lasting\u00a0peace.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The need is real: More than one in four people globally, about 2.1 billion, lack access to clean drinking water, and more than 3.4 billion people lack adequate sanitation, according to the\u00a0World Health Organization<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Water can be a catalyst for conflict as countries and regions fight over access for human use, irrigation, transportation; it can also be a casualty of war, through conflict-triggered pollution, destroyed infrastructure or deliberate fouling of sensitive supplies. Traditionally, the United States has played a vital role in recognizing water\u2019s pivotal role as both a source of conflict and potential stabilizer by ensuring that negotiation and mediation efforts around its use are prioritized.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n As the United States continues its review and reprioritization of foreign\u00a0assistance, there is an opportunity to\u00a0effectively and efficiently shape and improve U.S.\u00a0assistance\u00a0on water security to enhance our own security and prosperity. Cooperative management of scarce resources builds diplomatic muscle memory, and in relationships with historical mistrust, technical dialogue on water can ensure doors are kept open when regional politics tries to slam them shut.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Conversely, water scarcity or mismanagement can twist political tensions into open instability. Around the world, water crises can add fuel to political disputes, driving human displacement and weakening fragile states. Add population growth and ongoing industrialization, and water has increasingly become a trigger for conflict that can spread regionally, destabilizing trade routes, spreading diseases and famine and triggering human displacement.\u00a0<\/p>\n Historically, U.S. policy has\u00a0focused\u00a0on\u00a0the needs of populations, prioritizing shared access and\u00a0facilitating\u00a0dialogue around this\u00a0literally lifesaving\u00a0resource.\u00a0Investment in water infrastructure\u00a0was critical\u00a0to\u00a0the Marshall Plan<\/a>,\u00a0through\u00a0which\u00a0the United States\u00a0helped rebuild Europe\u00a0after World War II, and is part of\u00a0the robust engagement that is the\u00a0hallmark of the Mekong-U.S. Partnership<\/a>, which focuses on transboundary governance and data transparency for the five Mekong countries\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Cambodia, Laos, Burma, Thailand, and Vietnam.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n In 2014, Congress passed the\u00a0Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act,<\/a>\u00a0which highlights that \u201cthe United States should be a global leader in helping provide sustainable access to clean water and sanitation for the world\u2019s most vulnerable populations,\u201d directly tying health to water.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n There are currently places around the world where water has both triggered conflict and been a casualty of conflict.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n In Iraq,\u00a0entire communities along the Euphrates River have been displaced<\/a>\u00a0because of drying marshes, with many locating to major urban centers such as Basra, in southern Iraq, where the\u00a0dwindling water supply has triggered protests<\/a>. In Yemen, the\u00a0conflict has damaged core water infrastructure<\/a>, including sanitation systems, triggering outbreaks of diseases such as cholera.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n In Africa\u2019s continent-spanning stretch of arid land called the Sahel, traditional tensions between communities have intensified as wells dry up and rivers shift and shrink, disrupting agriculture.\u00a0\u00a0Lake Chad, which touches Chad, Niger, and Cameroon in west Africa, has traditionally provided irrigation support and fishing livelihoods for an estimated\u00a030 million people, but has shrunk by\u00a0nearly 90%\u00a0since the 1970s,\u00a0displacing millions, fueling instability and devastating the economies of countries<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Armed groups around the world exploit water tensions, metering out access to drinking water, access to irrigation and grazing for livestock. Even today, as conflict continues in the Middle East,\u00a0desalination plants in both Iran and Bahrain have been attacked<\/a>, cutting off sources of fresh water for population centers that will take years to rebuild.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n There are also good news stories.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n In South Asia, the\u00a0Indus Waters Treaty between India and Pakistan<\/a>\u00a0has\u00a0remained\u00a0a stabilizing force, despite political tensions, but this framework relies on continued communication and technical cooperation, even when diplomatic ties are strained. The World Bank has also focused on\u00a0stability secured through shared investments<\/a>\u00a0in water infrastructure, such as mechanisms like those in Central Asia, including agreements between Kazakhstan and the Kyrgyz Republic, and between Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, for operation and maintenance of shared water infrastructure and resources.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The United States, other countries, international organizations, and private groups can play a critical role in improving access to water and sanitation by continuing traditional leadership through diplomacy,\u00a0convening\u00a0and targeted investment.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The United States can, for example, continue to\u00a0facilitate\u00a0structured cooperation and\u00a0dialogue on\u00a0shared river basins, where more than 3 billion people depend on waters that cross national borders<\/a>. Where formal agreements exist between countries, a mechanism exists to resolve emerging tensions \u2013 and technical dialogue can continue even when political relations are strained.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The United States, through bilateral and regional partnerships, can encourage water cooperation as a confidence-building measure \u2026 even when other channels are fragile.\u00a0<\/p>\n