2.3 Opportunities and challenges The vital necessity, limited availability, unequal distribution and irreplaceability of (drinking) water make it one of the most important natural resources worldwide. The trends outlined in section 2.2 and the adjustments to climate change required highlight the fact that responsible management of water represents a growing challenge. Well planned and implemented adaptation measures – especially with regard to the climate – nevertheless also represent opportunities to improve water management in general. Technological progress can also contribute towards managing existing water problems more effectively.7 The opportunities include the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development providing the international community with an instrument that offers both a visionary and practical global framework for action on water. Even though the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly hampered the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, it remains the decisive reference document for coherent commitment to sustainable development over the coming years.
principles of human rights, equality and non-discrimination. SDG 6 should not be viewed in isolation. It makes strong and wide-ranging references to other SDGs where water plays a major role, such as health, combating poverty, hunger and climate change, and also to promoting biodiversity. Switzerland supports the UN’s vision of a world where the availability of water is universally secured and in which all people, with their respective cultures, and the economy can thrive in a responsible way and become more resilient to risks such as climate change. In this respect, it adopts a comprehensive approach, combining the various foreign policy instruments, and structures its Guidelines on Water 2022–25 based on the five critical dimensions of the 2030 Agenda. 8
Switzerland has pledged to make a contribution to the 2030 Agenda in general and to «SDG 6 Clean water and sanitation for all» in particular. SDG 6 adopts an integral approach where water is a key factor in social change towards more sustainable development. The goal expressly refers to the
7
Section 3.10.
8
Section 4.
A destroyed water pipe in Aleppo, Syria (© Reuters / Hosan Katan).
Environment
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