Latin America is home to 30% of the world's water resources, but despite this, one in three of the region's citizens require more water than they have. Additionally, according to the latest JMP report, 163 million people in the region do not have access to safe drinking water, and 336 million lack safe access to sanitation, with only 36% of wastewater treated.
Faced with this challenging scenario, CAF -development bank of Latin America and the Caribbean- is participating in World Water Week, which has as its central message "Seeds of Change: Innovative Solutions for a Water-Wise World", which invites us to rethink how we manage water.
"We are aware that guaranteeing access to and efficient use of water is of utmost importance for the political, social and economic stability of the continent, as well as the reduction of different gaps in our society. For CAF, participation in spaces such as the World Water Week represents an opportunity to align and strengthen strategies that guarantee access to drinking water and endorse our commitment to financing strategic projects related to this resource," said Angel Cardenas, CAF's manager of Urban Development, Water and Creative Economies.
In March 2023 alone, the institution announced an investment of USD 4 billion to finance initiatives that promote water security in the region. As part of its participation, CAF will promote actions aligned with its strategic objectives to ensure proper water management:
- Integrated management of water resources as a way to improve governance, drought management and flood control.
- Safe, inclusive and efficient access to water and sanitation.
- Reduction of pollution in water bodies for a healthy environment.
- Access to irrigation for family farming and intensive agriculture.
CAF highlighted at this event its most recent publication about gaps and investment in water and climate resilience in the Latin American and Caribbean region towards 2030 and 2040 (available in Spanish: Brechas y cartera de inversiones en agua y resiliencia climática en la región de América Latina y el Caribe hacia El 2030 Y 2040), which quantifies the investment required to achieve the targets of SDG 6 and related SDGs (SDGs 2, 3, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15), based on the investment plans formulated by the member countries themselves. The calculation of this investment makes it possible to identify the gap, comparing past investments with projected future investments, considering a necessary acceleration rate to achieve the targets.
The study concludes that the region requires an estimated investment of USD 365 billion (capital expenditure, CAPEX), distributed in four thematic areas (water and sanitation, storm drainage and flood control, irrigation and resilient agriculture, and coastal zone management) for the period from 2021 to 2030. The study also identifies a list of potential projects to be developed in the future for an amount of USD 33 billion, allowing CAF to monitor the status of these projects and, if necessary, support the preparation process through the formulation of pre-investment technical cooperation to expedite implementation.
It should be noted that the projects supported by CAF over the last five years have resulted in the construction of 1,300 km of drinking water pipes and 1,700 km of sewage systems that have benefited 12 million people in both rural and urban areas, directly contributing to Sustainable Development Goal number 6, which seeks sustainable water management and sanitation for all.
