Managing water resources for sustainable rural development

Transfer of technology, both horizontal and vertical, needs to be strengthened. Mechanisms to provide credit, input supplies, markets, appropriate pricing and transportation must be developed jointly by countries and external support agencies. Integrated rural water-supply infrastructure, including facilities for water-related education and training and support services for agriculture, should be expanded for multiple use and should assist in developing the rural economy.

Many are still denied the clean water and food security which are basic human rights. Assessments confirm a dramatically-rising pressure on land resources, particularly in mainland Asia and Africa. Future freshwater problems look even more severe than they did two years ago. UNEP's GEO-2000 Report emphasizes how land issues are inextricably interwoven with water management at both national and regional levels.

This strategy features in the framework of Agenda 21 as formulated at UNCED (Rio de Janeiro, 1992), now coordinated by the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development and implemented through national and local authorities.