Resource Scarcity: Water Scarcity Poses 'Fundamental Risk to Stability,' New Report Finds

Mar 21, 2019 | Teresa Welsh, Devex
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Ensuring equal access to water is a key component to maintaining societal stability and preventing conflict in fragile states, according to a new report by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. Accessible, affordable water access is at the center of ensuring the world’s growing population —  which, in 2019, includes approximately 821 million food-insecure people and 150 million malnourished children, according to the report — has enough to eat. The report, which noted that “as water scarcity intensifies, we must remember that without water, there is no food, and without food, there is no security,” found that communities, where water access is disputed or becomes a point of tension, can be a dangerous multiplier for underlying conflict.