The United Nations University's Institute for Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH) has released a critical report titled “Global Water Bankruptcy: Living Beyond Our Hydrological Means in the Post-Crisis Era.” The report highlights the growing water crisis worldwide and the serious prospect of irreversible water bankruptcy.

United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH)
¨     UN-designated Water Think Tank:UNU-INWEH is a specialized institute of the United Nations that focuses on research, policy analysis, and scientific collaboration related to global water resources.
¨     Establishment and Background:It was established in 1996 and operates under the United Nations University (UNU), which serves as the academic and research arm of the United Nations.
¨     Headquarters:The institute is headquartered in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Key highlights of the Report
¨     This report declares that the world has already entered the era of Global Water Bankruptcy. The condition is not a distant threat but a present reality.
¨     Nearly 75% of the global population lives in water-insecure or critically water-insecure countries.
¨     Around 4 billion people face severe water scarcity for at least one month annually.
¨     Water bankruptcy is a permanent “post-crisis” state where a region’s long-term water use persistently exceeds its renewable supply, leading to irreversible damage to natural water systems.
¨     Decades of unsustainable extraction have depleted aquifers, glaciers, wetlands, soils, and river systems.
¨     Water systems are described as being in a “post-crisis state of failure.”
¨     Over 170 million hectares of irrigated cropland face high to very high water stress.
¨     Annual global economic losses exceed $300 billion due to land degradation, groundwater depletion, and climate change.
¨     Three billion people and over half of global food production are located in regions with declining water storage.
¨     Salinisation has degraded more than 100 million hectares of cropland.
¨     Researchers call for a new global water agenda, focusing on damage minimisation rather than restoring past norms.
Major hotspots of Water Bankruptcy
¨     Middle East and North Africa region: These regions face the convergence of low agricultural productivity, energy-intensive desalination, sand and dust storms within complex political economies.
¨     South Asia: Groundwater-dependent agriculture and urbanization have produced chronic declines in water tables and local subsidence.
¨     American Southwest Region: The Colorado River and its reservoirs have become symbols of over-promised water.
Key Causes of Water Bankruptcy
¨     Unsustainable Water Extraction: Excessive withdrawal of surface water and groundwater beyond natural recharge rates, leading to depletion of rivers, aquifers, wetlands, and long-term water reserves.
¨     Agricultural Overdependence on Water: Nearly 70% of global freshwater withdrawals are used for irrigation, often inefficiently, placing severe stress on water systems amid rising food demand.
¨     Climate Change Impacts: Melting glaciers, altered rainfall patterns, and extreme weather events intensify droughts and floods, disrupting natural water storage and availability.
¨     Population Growth and Urbanisation: Rapid uneven population growth, expanding cities, and economic growth have sharply raised water demand for domestic, industrial, and energy uses.
¨     Water Pollution and Degradation: Contamination from industrial waste, agricultural runoff, and salinisation reduces usable freshwater, effectively shrinking available supplies.
¨     Weak Governance and Mismanagement: Fragmented policies, poor regulation, and short-term crisis management have failed to address long-term water sustainability and ecosystem protection.
Significance of the Report
¨     Conceptual Shift in Water Discourse: Formally introduces “global water bankruptcy”, moving beyond reversible notions of water stress or crisis to highlight irreversible depletion of natural water capital.
¨     Policy and Governance Reset: Calls for a fundamental reset of the global water agenda, prioritising science-based adaptation, long-term sustainability, and damage minimisation over short-term crisis management.
¨     Global Risk and Interconnectedness: Establishes water scarcity as a systemic global risk, linked through trade, migration, climate feedbacks, food security, and geopolitics, affecting all regions, not just hotspots.
¨     Catalyst for Global Cooperation: Positions water as a unifying strategic issue capable of advancing climate action, biodiversity conservation, and international cooperation ahead of the 2026 UN Water Conference.