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key words index  > access to water carto

access to water

articles FR [12] EN [11] ES [5]
dossiers FR [4] ES [2]
books and publications FR [2] EN [4] ES [1]
actors FR [3]
campaigns FR [4] EN [4] ES [3]
recommended sites FR [3]

articles

Forum Alternatif Mondial de l’eau

Support the Alternative World Water Forum : March 2012

The World Water Forum Marseille 2012, Istanbul 2009, Mexico 2006, Kyoto 2003, The Hague 2000, Marrakech 1997: Veolia… Suez… Saur… Public Private Partnerships… Price of Scarcity… Cost Recovery… Suez… Veolia… Big Dams… Desalination… Making the Users Pay… Bechtel… Veolia… Water is a Commodity… Have you had enough of hearing the same arguments again and again ? Have you had enough of hearing the same voices, those of multinationals and the most powerful states again and again ? Help us let other voices be (...) read

date of on-line publication : 9 May 2011

Suspension of Belo Monte Called For by Inter-American Commission on Human Rights

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), part of the Organization of American States (OAS), has officially requested the Brazilian Government to immediately suspend the Belo Monte Dam Complex in the Amazonian state of Pará, pending proper consultations with potentially affected indigenous peoples living in the Xingu river basin. Belo Monte would negatively impact indigenous peoples and other traditional communities in the Xingu River basin, particularly those living along a (...) read

date of on-line publication : 18 April 2011

Gaza hours away from water and sewage crisis

Oxfam Release Gaza hours from water and sewage crisis as fuel for pumps run dry Gaza’s water and sewage systems are a matter of hours from almost total shut down as stocks of fuel to run vital pumps runs out according to international agency Oxfam. Only 37 of the 122 water supply pumps have fuel and most will run out of fuel within hours. Only six water pumps have fuel to run for more than a day. Oxfam fears the risks of an outbreak of water borne diseases if the water and sanitation (...) read

date of on-line publication : 23 January 2008

Europe Solidaire Sans Frontières (ESSF)

Manila Water’s holiday gift to consumers: P14/cu. m. rate hike

Members of Freedom from Debt Coalition (FDC) and Progresibong Alyansa ng Tagatangkilik ng Tubig sa Kamaynilaan (PATTAK) brought holiday gift packages and Christmas lanterns as symbols of their protest against Manila Water Company Inc.’s proposal to increase rates by P14/cu. m. starting January 1, 2008. “This has always been the concessionaires’ gift to us – business driven interests, thus leading to unabated rate increases. Their ambitious service projections, and other contentious areas (...) read

date of on-line publication : 19 December 2007

22nd March : World Water Day

« Coping with Water Scarcity » is the theme for World Water Day 2007, which is celebrated each year on 22 March. This year’s theme highlights the increasing significance of water scarcity worldwide and the need for increased integration and cooperation to ensure sustainable, efficient and equitable management of scarce water resources, both at international and local levels. For further informations, see the website of the World Water (...) read

date of on-line publication : 20 March 2007

Transnational Institute (TNI)

Hungary : water privatisation in the context of transition

> In "Beyond the Market: The Future of Public Services", Zsolt Boda and Gábor Scheiring, April 2006, 7 p. (pdf)

Privatisation was to be the key to creating a healthy economy with competent companies that provide jobs for people and pay taxes, rather than being dependent upon state policies and subsidies. Just a few years into the transition to a marketeconomy, however, Hungarians have discovered that private ownership does not necessarily mean efficiency, and that the argument of additional investment is also questionable. The process of water privatisation well illustrates the pitfalls of (...) read

date of on-line publication : 13 March 2007

BELTRAN Elizabeth Peredo

Water, privatization and conflict

> April 2004, Fundación Solon, 54 p., (pdf)

An analysis of the role of women in the struggle against water privatisation, with a focus on the events in the Cochabamba Valley, Bolivia, where the community was able to kick out the private water company Betchel. « In both city and rural areas, women are at the heart of managing water for their communities (...) In a district where water is scarce, women have been forced to develop strategies to provide water for daily life. Women are the ones who get up at 3 or 4am to collect water from (...) read

date of on-line publication : 5 December 2005

Jim Shultz

The Right to Water Fulfilling the Promise

> A chapter from "Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in Latin America: From Theory to Practice"

http://www.democracyctr.org/bolivia/ (...)

How can we bridge the staggering gap between the declaration of water as a human right and the actual achievement of its fulfilment? Furthermore, what kinds of public policies - global, national and local - will we make sure that those promises are kept? These are the questions the Jim Shultz asks, through his study of how to expand access to water and sanitation and who should pay for it. Following the example of the revolt in Bolivia against water privatisation, the author underlines the flaws he perceives in the theology of privatisation as a means of advancing rights. The article goes on to consider what alternatives exist for financing the provision of clean water and what reforms are necessary to ensure the transparency of these systems.  read

date of on-line publication : 8 November 2005

BÄR Rosmarie

Water needs the protection of international law

> 2005, Social Watch (Report by Alliance Sud)

http://www.socialwatch.org/en/inform (...)

With facts like "80% of all diseases in developing countries can be traced back to the use of polluted water", the need for an equitable supply of safe water is great. This article outlines the arguments for an international convention within the UN framework binding the right to water and protecting it as a public good. The article discusses the policy failures surrounding the battle for access to water to be safeguarded, looks at some of the existing UN documents which state the need for access to clean drinking water, particularly within a human rights context and the shift from a "public good" to an "economic good". Finally it presents the need for a holistic approach to safeguarding water supply.

  • The full report, which goes into further details, can be found in pdf format at the Alliance Sud website here. This report is also available in French and Spanish.
 read

date of on-line publication : 8 November 2005

Massan d’Almeida

Is Water a Public Good or a Commodity?

> Appeared on Globalizacija site in English, October 2004. (Original text from AWID in French)

This article considers first the ethical principles by which access to water should be viewed. It argues that using the current approach of considering water as a commodity and privatising its supply will not allow us to reach the target of the Millennium Development Goals to reduce by half the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water. Finally it presents the reasons for and the benefits of an international binding convention on water. (...) read

date of on-line publication : 8 November 2005

SHIVA Vandana

India’s Water Future

The commodification of water

> 3rd November, 2005, ZNet

http://www.zmag.org/sustainers/conte (...)

This commentary looks at the World Bank’s efforts to reduce water to a “market economy” and its intentions for privatisation in India. The author also brings in a comparison with the Seed Act of 2004. Furthermore, the author argues: “by ignoring the ecological and hydrological limits of water availability and allowing water access and water distribution to be driven by insatiable markets, the Bank is prescribing a deepening of the water crisis and a growing polarization in access the water. The Bank’s future vision is the vision for a hydro-apartheid.”

  • More commentaries by the same author on the subjects of water and biopiracy can be found here.
 read

date of on-line publication : 8 November 2005

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