posted November 18, 2009
Senator Bob Corker, second-ranking Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, will hold an event at Belmont University in Nashville on Monday to highlight efforts to give millions around the world access to clean water.
Senator Corker and Senator Richard Durbin, D-Illinois, are sponsors of the Water for the World Act, S. 624, which sets a goal of reaching 100 million people with first-time, sustainable access to safe drinking water and sanitation by 2015.
Senator Corker will be joined by Dr. Bob Fisher, president of Belmont University, and:
Dave Barnes, a Nashville singer/songwriter involved with Mocha Club, an on-line community of people giving up the cost of two mochas a month – or $7 – to fund relief and development projects in Africa, including clean water; and
Bill Hearn, the president and CEO of EMI Christian Music Group, who is involved with Healing Waters International, a non-profit organization working to reduce water-related illness and death in developing countries.
Individuals and organizations interested in attending should RSVP to Hallie Williams at Hallie_Williams@corker.senate.gov or 202 228-5515 by Friday.
The Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2009, S.624
Sponsored by U.S. Senators Bob Corker and Richard Durbin
Ten years ago the late Senator Paul Simon wrote the book “Tapped Out,” which warned of the world’s looming clean water crisis. His call for greater U.S. leadership on this issue led to the passage of the Water for the Poor Act of 2005, which has given millions of people access to clean water and improved sanitation. Yet the impact could be much greater.
Today almost one billion people lack access to safe drinking water, and two of every five people do not have access to basic sanitation. These conditions contribute to nearly 10 percent of the world’s disease.
Each year 1.8 million people—90 percent of them children under the age of five—die from preventable diarrheal diseases. Diarrheal diseases and related malnutrition account for virtually all of the deaths and nearly 90 percent of the overall disease burden associated with unsafe water supply, sanitation, and hygiene.
Water scarcity hinders economic growth, limits the opportunities of women and girls to work or go to school, and has contributed to political unrest in Sudan and elsewhere. Water and poverty are inextricably linked.
According to the United Nations Development Program, every $1 invested in safe drinking water and sanitation produces an $8 return in costs averted and productivity gained. Water is the right place to invest in these difficult economic times.
In fiscal year 2007, the U.S. obligated more than $900 million for water- and sanitation-related activities in developing countries. As a result, millions of people gained improved access to safe drinking water and sanitation, water resources are being managed more wisely and productively, and many communities are enjoying greater water security. In addition, nearly two million people gained first-time access to an improved water source, and more than 1.5 million gained first-time access to basic sanitation.
To strengthen U.S. leadership on this critical issue, U.S. Senators Bob Corker and Richard Durbin have introduced the Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2009, S.624, which sets a goal of reaching 100 million people with first-time, sustainable access to safe drinking water and sanitation by 2015.
The bill implements recommendations made by the Center for Strategic & International Studies in its recently released report, “Global Water Futures.” The bill would expand safe water and sanitation efforts in priority countries, promote research and technology development, and improve training and technical assistance to help meet the water needs of the world’s poor. It would also increase capacity and sharpens the focus at USAID and the U.S. state department to implement these activities.
Senators Corker and Durbin introduced the Water for the World Act on March 17. It has been referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Specifically, the bill would:
Establish an Office of Water within USAID,
Establish the Bureau of International Water under the Under Secretary for Democracy and Global Affairs,
Require a revisit of or the development of a strategy to meet water security goals,
Establish a water and sanitation managers program in every priority country to train local leaders in best practices,
Provide grants for low cost and sustainable technologies suitable for high priority countries, and
Require an assessment of current and future political tensions over water resources and the expected impacts of climate change on water accessibility.
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