It is a natural resource taken for granted in industrialized countries, but a day long struggle in many areas of the world just to obtain a few drops.
In North America and Japan people use 350 litres a day and it takes another 13,000 litres to produce just one kilo of beef for the dinner table.
In contrast, nearly half the world's population live on the edge of squalor because of the lack of it and nearly two million people die each year from related diseases, including 3,900 children a day.
But with a burgeoning global population, the increasing demands of agriculture and industry and climate change, the crisis over the world's most precious resource....water...will increase in coming decades.
By 2015 nearly 40% of the world's population is expected to live in 'water-stressed' countries and as the situation in areas like Darfur have already highlighted, struggles for diminishing natural resources such as water can lead to wars, increased global death tolls and endanger health, education, industrial and environmental systems.
Halfway through the United Nations 'Water for Life' decade, the 5th World Water Forum, the largest conference of its kind in the world, will be held in Istanbul, Turkey March 16-22 to seek some solutions.
A strong delegation from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will be among the thousands of delegates from governments, non governmental organizations, specialized agencies and academia and will be involved in the various panel discussions and events planned to identify "the 100 most pressing water related issues of our time."
Japan's Role
Japan for many years has been involved in projects to help provide more access to water for hundreds of millions of the world's most vulnerable people.
In 2007 Japan allocated $1.6 billion in ODA loans for water-related projects, 73% of that amount to Asian countries. A further $180 million was given as grant aid, 29% to Africa. JICA invested $7.2 million in technical assistance water projects.
The world's largest bilateral agency has concentrated on four main areas of water development: providing safe and stable water supplies, enhancing flood control to protect lives and property; conserving the water environment and promoting integrated water resource management.
The overall strategy is part of Japan's commitment to meeting by 2015 the UN Millennium Goals which includes improving access to water for the world's poor and strengthening their 'human security' - a concept which empowers and protects vulnerable people by involving them more closely in both the planning and execution of grass-roots projects in such areas as water, health and education, thereby making them more effective and responsive to local needs.
More than one billion people do not have access to clean drinking water and another 2.6 are without adequate sanitation. To help overcome that problem JICA has helped construct thousands of wells and sanitation equipment in communities from Asia to Africa to Latin and South America.
Ugly Problem
Ethiopia faces one of the most difficult situations in the world and more than 40 million people do not have access to safe water. JICA has worked with government authorities to exploit its groundwater resources to provide more and safer water for personal and agricultural use.
Since 1993 when JICA drew up a master plan for the water supply system of the capital, Phnom Penh, the agency has been renovating water facilities and providing grant aid to rehabilitate Cambodia's water system.
Kenya's Nyando River basin is constantly hit by flooding and JICA began to draw up a flood control plan in 2006. In the Nakuru region of Kenya it is working to improve environmental management near the world famous flamingo reserve.
JICA has developed master plans for 22 major river basins in Indonesia to support integrated water resources management. The government subsequently established water resources infrastructure in 14 regions with the assistance of ODA loans.
In China JICA has provided policy recommendations for developing a basic legal framework of a water rights system and helped to reinforce water resources management systems.
Agriculture accounts for around 90 percent of the world's fresh water and in related projects, JICA experts have helped Egypt to make more efficient use of the Nile River waters and small-time rice farmers in Timor-Leste improve local irrigation schemes.
In 2007 the organization dispatched nearly 480 experts across the globe to participate in water projects. Additionally, some 827 local nationals received training both local and in Japan.