A recent UN report  warns that the world has reached a state of water bankruptcy. While not all countries are water bankrupt, enough critical systems around the world have crossed these thresholds, affecting all of us due to our interconnectedness through trade, migration, climate feedback and geopolitical dependencies.

Water underpins public health, human security and prosperity, food and energy security, biodiversity, environmental resilience, climate stability and peace. Yet, 2.2 billion people still lack access to safely managed drinking water, and 3.5 billion people lack access to sanitation. Two thirds of the world's population experience severe water scarcity for at least one month a year.

While less than two thirds of wastewater is released into the environment untreated, even the most sophisticated wastewater treatment plants are unable to remove all emerging contaminants such as pharmaceuticals, PFAS (forever chemicals) and nanoplastics. The global water cycle is off balance, causing extreme droughts, floods and sea-level rise.

Water scarcity is not only an environmental and developmental problem. It is increasingly becoming a political and a security challenge. Forty percent of the world’s population live in areas of shared basins and aquifers; one third of these people do not benefit from cooperation agreements. This creates potential for both conflict and cooperation. Historically, there has been much more cooperation than conflict over water. However, increasing demand for this most finite yet undervalued resource risks undermining our economies, social cohesion, environmental integrity and peace.

The current development system and water management model struggle to deliver. The upcoming UN Water Conference, co-hosted by the UAE and Senegal, set to take place in Abu Dhabi, UAE, at the end of 2026, is an opportunity to define the contours of the new governance models that are better suited to the current and future needs of humans and nature.

The theme of this year's World Water Day – gender equality – points to a key gap: women and girls are disproportionally affected by water-related challenges, yet they remain largely excluded from relevant decision-making processes.

In many parts of the world, women and girls traditionally bear the primary responsibility for household water management and time-consuming water fetching, which exposes them to risks of violence. Too many lack proper access to WASH services and facilities to meet their needs related to reproductive health and caretaking. Inadequate WASH facilities in schools contribute to school absenteeism, limiting girls' opportunities.

Women's and girls' needs, experiences, knowledge, and perspectives on water often differ from those of men and boys. Excluding women and girls from planning and decision-making risks undermining progress. Non-inclusive approaches and solutions perpetuate inequalities and increase the chances of failure.

When women participate as negotiators, mediators, decision-makers or community leaders, water projects and agreements are more effective, equitable and sustainable. Their involvement brings broader benefits, including higher incomes, greater attention to social and environmental issues and increased empowerment of women in other areas.

Gender inclusion strengthens resilience and cooperation. Integrating women’s perspectives into water governance is not only a matter of equity and justice. It is also a practical strategy for achieving durable and peaceful outcomes.

Recognising that our current approaches are not only not delivering but even causing irreversible damage to our water resources, is a necessary first step. It is a starting point towards designing a more just and science-based agenda through an inclusive, transparent and cross-sectoral dialogue at local, national, regional and global levels.

Foreign Ministers of Cabo Verde, Costa Rica, Iceland, Singapore, Slovenia and the United Arab Emirates.