UN marks World Water Day with emphasis on food security

22 Mar 2012

Students from a school in Saut-d'Eau in Haiti cultivating for World Water Day 2012. Image courtesy of the UN World Water Day Facebook page

Today is World Water Day 2012 and this year the UN is honing in on food security. Events are happening all around the world today to emphasis issues such as how drought is still the No 1 cause of severe food shortages in developing countries.

There are more than 7bn people to feed on the planet today and another 2bn expected to join us by 2050, according to UN figures, so water security has become a topical issue of late.

It was back in 1993 when the UN first designated 22 March as World Water Day, after recommendations were made at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED).

Each year, World Water Day hones in on a specific issues to do with freshwater. Last year’s day, or instance, was all about water and the impact of rapid urban growth across the planet.

World Water Day also looks at issues such as climate change, natural disasters and conflict that can impact the security of water supply.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations is co-ordinating World Water Day 2012. People can upload their event photos on the UN’s World Water Day Facebook page.

World Water Day 2012 events

Carmel Doyle was a long-time reporter with Silicon Republic

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