Water makes headlines in times of crisis—think Cape Town Day Zero, Hurricane Maria, or the cholera epidemic in Yemen. But for the 2.1 billion people worldwide who live without access to safe drinking water, and approximately 4.4 billion without access to adequate sanitation, lack of these basic necessities is a daily reality that affects health, economic well-being, productivity, and quality of life.

In November 2017, the U.S. Government (USG) released the first-ever whole of government Global Water Strategy, the culmination of 17 government agencies working together to address the world’s most pressing water challenges through diplomacy, foreign assistance, science, and technology. The real work of making this vision a reality and coordinating the implementation of the Strategy at the USG level began Tuesday, March 13, at the “Reaching a Water Secure World: U.S. Global Water Strategy Workshop” hosted by USAID and the U.S. Department of State, in Washington, DC, and live streamed worldwide.

There is a growing global water crisis that may increase disease, undermine economic growth, foster insecurity and state failure, and generally reduce the capacity of countries to advance priorities that support U.S. national interests. To address these challenges and contribute to a healthier, safer, and more prosperous world, the United States will work to support a water secure world where people have sustainable supplies of water of sufficient quantity and quality to meet human, economic, and ecosystem needs while managing risks from floods and droughts.