Water scarcity is a global test of governance
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Water is the defining resource challenge of this era and demands far greater urgency. Despite decades of pledges and progress, billions still lack clean water and sanitation, and floods and droughts devastate economies. The technology, policies and financing exist; what’s missing is strong governance to turn isolated projects into lasting resilience.
For Saudi Arabia and countries across the Middle East and North Africa, this is not a distant concern. MENA is the most water-scarce region on Earth: it holds only 1-2 percent of the world’s renewable freshwater yet is home to about 6 percent of its people, and 11 of the world’s 17 most water-stressed countries lie within it.
The scale of the challenge
As of 2026, 2.1 billion people lack safely managed drinking water and 3.4 billion lack safely managed sanitation. Demand will exceed supply by 40 percent by 2030, and by 2050 up to 2.4 billion people may live in water-stressed regions, including parts of MENA, where stress already exceeds 75 percent. Water-related disasters cause more deaths than any other natural hazard, and poor water and sanitation cost the global economy about $260 billion annually. With less than five years to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 6 — universal access to safe water and sanitation — current progress will not close the gap.
Infrastructure needs will surpass $6.7 trillion by 2030, yet public investment lags. The core issue is governance - clear mandates, capable institutions, and accountable financing. A different approach is needed: coordinated action linking finance, science, information, and policy into a governance system built to deliver SDG 6.
Financing
Closing the investment gap depends on governments designing bankable projects, de-risking investment and mobilizing blended finance. Saudi Arabia’s experience is instructive: the Kingdom is the world’s largest producer of desalinated water, with capacity reaching about 16 million cubic meters a day, up from 4.6 million in 2016, and its independent water projects under Vision 2030 show the impact of disciplined project structuring.
Innovation must accelerate, particularly in nature-based solutions, efficient irrigation, desalination, and digital monitoring. The Gulf already holds a disproportionate share of the world’s desalination capacity; sharing lessons on cost and efficiency, alongside genuine technology transfer to lower-income countries, would benefit the whole region.
Reliable information
Many countries still lack consistent monitoring of water availability, quality and use. National and shared data systems turn evidence into action. Saudi Arabia cut its non-renewable groundwater use from about 21 billion cubic meters in 2016 to roughly 11 billion in 2025 because that use was measured, tracked and governed.
Ultimately, policy and governance bind these efforts together. National frameworks must set clear targets, define roles, ensure accountability, and elevate water on the global political agenda through stronger intergovernmental cooperation.
Need for collective coordination and action
No single institution or country can address water pressures alone. Progress accelerates when countries align priorities through shared standards, joint investment platforms, and regional agreements. When countries work together and share approaches, solutions become more coherent, scalable and resilient.
Turning the tide
The world stands at a crossroads, and the choices made in this decade will determine whether water becomes a source of stability or strain for communities everywhere. Saudi Arabia’s leadership reflects this urgency. The Kingdom helped establish the Global Water Organization, headquartered in Riyadh. With its charter signed by member states in 2025, the Organization is built on four pillars: Facilitate financing and funding, research and innovation, data and knowledge, and policy and governance. Its mandate is global, focused on bolstering international cooperation and collective action to address shared water challenges.
As countries and partners strengthen governance at every level, the opportunity to turn the tide – and advance SDG6 – is within reach. The time to act is now.
• Dr. Fahad Balghunaim is head of the founding team of GWO.
