A hearing to review the U.S. programs designed to help developing countries produce clean drinking water was held today by U.S. Rep. Chris Smith, Chairman of the U.S. House subcommittee on global health.
Featuring top U.S. government officials overseeing water programs, the hearing was entitled "The Impact of U.S. Water Programs on Global Health." Testifying were: Christian Holmes, Global Water Coordinator, U.S. Agency for International Development; Aaron A. Salzberg, Ph.D., Special Coordinator for Water Resources, U.S. Department of State; John Oldfield, Chief Executive Officer, WASH Advocates; Malcolm Morris, Chairman, Millennium Water Alliance, and; Buey Ray Tut, Executive Director, Aqua Africa. (Click here to read the witnesses statements or view the hearing).
The following are the opening remarks of Chairman Smith:
Good afternoon. Two years ago, our subcommittee held a hearing on U.S. Africa programs and found that the unitary water budget line item had been “zeroed out.” Needless to say, member of our subcommittee were astonished that such an important segment of our foreign policy was seemingly being abandoned. We were assured that the money for international water programs did not disappear, but was merely redistributed among several programs. Today’s hearing is intended to look at how effective this strategy has been and to look at how our government’s international water programs will be implemented in the future.
Water is undeniably important to health and the very survival of human beings. Water comprises more than two thirds of human body weight, and without water, we would die in a few days. The human brain is 95% water, blood is 82% and lungs 90%. A mere 2% drop in our body's water supply can trigger signs of dehydration: fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on smaller print, such as a computer screen. Water is important to the mechanics of the human body. The body cannot work without it, just as a car cannot run without gas and oil.
It is, therefore, troubling that so many people in the world do not have ready access to water. According to a 2012 report released by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children's Fund, roughly 780 million people around the world lack access to clean drinking water, and an estimated 2.5 billion people (roughly 40% of the world's population) are without access to safe sanitation facilities. Tainted water and unsanitary practices are at the root of many health problems in the developing world and are hindering U.S. and international global health efforts.
In a June 27th hearing on neglected diseases, the subcommittee heard testimony on the WHO list of 17 neglected tropical diseases – three of which are primarily water-borne. However, there are dozens of other diseases transmitted through contaminated water, including botulism, cholera, dysentery, hepatitis A, polio and SARS.
WHO estimates that more than 14,000 people die daily from water-borne illnesses, which cause:
- More than 1 billion cases of intestinal worms,
- 1.4 million child diarrheal deaths and
- 500,000 deaths from malaria.
Moreover, water is at the root of international conflict. A growing number of conflicts are exacerbated by limited access to water. Increasing demand and greater variability in rainfall can inflame tensions, such as the concern Egypt has expressed about the impact of the Nile’s flow due to Ethiopia’s proposed Grand Renaissance Dam.
Although water circulates, returning to availability through various natural processes as evaporation, clouds and rain, only about 2.5 percent of the planet’s water is fresh rather than salty, and less than half that amount is available in rivers, lakes and underground aquifers. Pollution consumes some of the available water from industrial or agricultural runoff. An estimated 40 percent of U.S. rivers and 46 percent of U.S. lakes are considered unfit for fishing, swimming or drinking, and we are a developed country with significant resources. Developing countries too often don’t keep adequate track of the extent of pollution nor have the ability to adequately do something about it. Other constraints on the global supply of water include efforts to privatize water systems in the developing world and the encroachment of salt water into fresh water systems.
The challenges to ensuring that clean water is available to people in developing countries are serious. That is why new legislation is being developed – The Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2013 — intended to support the original 2005 act by strengthening and refining its implementation. The new bill calls on USAID to continue to observe the Water for the Poor Act of 2005 in the implementation of its Water and Development Strategy. The bill would elevate the positions of our first two witnesses today – the USAID Global Water Coordinator and the State Department Special Advisor for Water Resources to report directly to the Administrator of USAID and Secretary of State respectively. Among other provisions, the bill requires local consultation on water management and usage and encourages local contracting on water, sanitation and hygiene projects. I am co-sponsoring this legislation because water is life, and we must be as efficient as possible in our efforts to provide clean water to those in need worldwide.
In addition to the leading Administration officials on international water programs, we have three private panel experts on water policy and the implementation of water programming. I look forward to hearing from our witnesses on how our efforts in this regard can be made more successful.
