Water plays an essential role in human life, and without water, humans cannot survive. As the world's population continues to grow, it is important to manage limited water resources efficiently.
In this context, more than 40% of the world's population is affected by water scarcity, and water-related disasters account for 70% of natural disaster-related deaths. Pressure on water resources is increasing worldwide, with projections that the world will experience a 40% water shortage by 2030 if current practices continue.
Feeding 10 billion people by 2050 will require a 50% increase in agricultural production, which currently uses 70% of available water resources and a 15% increase in water withdrawals. However, as demand increases, water resources are becoming increasingly limited in many regions of the world. A major challenge facing many countries today is the security of water resources, which is often increasing.
Based on data from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), for the Southeast Asian region alone, Indonesia had 2,018.7 km3/year of renewable water resources in 2020, making it the country with the highest water resource potential among ASEAN countries.
Myanmar follows in second place with a renewable water resource volume of 1,167.8 km3/year, and Vietnam in third place with renewable water resources of 884.12 km3/year.
Nevertheless, according to the Environmental Performance Index (EPI) in 2022, Indonesia ranks 125th in the world in terms of sanitation and drinking water quality, and 9th in the Southeast Asia region with a score of 28.5.
On the other hand, although Singapore has the lowest water resource potential in ASEAN, it is the country with the best access to sanitation and drinking water in 2022 among Southeast Asian countries, with a score of 93.3 points. Brunei Darussalam follows in second place for the best sanitation and drinking water quality in Southeast Asia with a score of 85.7, despite being ranked 8th in terms of water resource potential.
The Environmental Performance Index (Epi) itself is used as a tool to assess access to sanitation and safe drinking water around the world, covering a total of 180 countries. This assessment is adjusted for the rate of disability per 100,000 people due to lack of access to adequate sanitation and safe drinking water.
