UNDP REPORT STATES GLOBAL WATER CRISIS DOES NOT THREATEN ARMENIA SO FAR
By Karine Danielian

AZG Armenian Daily
16/11/2006

Yesterday, at the UN Office in Yerevan Vartan Aivazyan, RA minister
of nature protection, and Consuelo Vidal, UN resident coordinator and
UNDP resident representative in Armenia, represented the 2006 global
human development report (HDR). The 2006 UNDP report is entitled
"Beyond scarcity: Power, poverty and the global water crisis". The
Report calls on the governments of rich states to act urgently
to address the global water crisis: each year, the authors state,
1.8 million children die from diarrhea that could be prevented with
access to clean water and a toilet; 443 million school days are lost
to water-related illnesses; and almost 50 percent of all people in
developing countries are suffering at any given time from a health
problem caused by a lack of water and sanitation. Besides, the HDR
2006 calls on governments to spend 1% GDP on water and sanitation.

"Everyone should have at least 20 litres of clean water per day and the
poor should get it for free," said Ms. Consuelo Vidal. A Global Action
Plan should be created to overcome this crisis under leadership of G8,
she stated. The Report advocates for all governments to go beyond vague
constitutional principles in enabling legislation to secure the human
right to a safe, accessible and affordable water supply. At a minimum,
this implies a target of at least 20 litres of clean water a day for
every citizen-and at no cost for those too poor to pay, the authors
of the document emphasize. The Report’s authors urge all governments
to prepare national plans for accelerating progress in water and
sanitation, with ambitious targets backed with financing to the tune
of at least one percent of GDP, and clear strategies for overcoming
inequalities. In his turn, Vartan Aivazyan stated that in the course
of the recent years, Armenia initiated a number of reforms in the area
of water and sanitation management, as well as sustainable use of water
resources. Thanks to these efforts, water management and accessibility
have gradually improved in Yerevan and other major cities.

Similar positive trends were registered in terms of the level of
Sevan Lake. These achievements need to be acknowledged, but at the
same time we need to use this opportunity to draw the public and the
government’s attention to the existing issues: endangered ecosystem
of Sevan due to the emerging swamping phenomena; lack of access
to potable water in many rural and urban communities in Armenia;
intensified desertification processes in Ararat and Armavir marzes;
increased deforestation in Tavush and Lori marzes. Under the UNDP
report, the HDI (human development index) for Armenia is 0.768,
which gives Armenia a rank of 80th out of 177 countries. Hence,
Armenia leaves behind Azerbaijan and Georgia, which occupy the 99th
and the 97th places, respectively. In the report, Armenia is among the
countries with average level of human potential. It has fallen by 3
positions as against the previous year. HDI comprises GDP per capita,
life expectancy at birth, adult literate rate. According to the report,
GDP per capita in Armenia makes up $4.1 thousand, in Georgia – $2.8
thousand, in Azerbaijan – $4.1 thousand. Life expectancy index in
Armenia is 71 years, in Azerbaijan about 67, and in Georgia – 70.

Adult literacy level in Armenia makes up 99.4%.