World Water Day on 22 March
World Water Day
The United Nations first launched World Water Day in 1992. Since then, the 22nd of March has served as an annual reminder of the importance of our most vital resource for all life and its special characteristics. The motto of the 2023 World Water Day campaign is “Accelerating Change”.
This year’s theme aims to shine the spotlight on the importance of national and international cooperation for achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 to ensure access to clean water and sanitation for all by 2030. Access to water should not be a privilege. Achieving this goal requires enormous efforts on a multitude of levels. From 22 to 24 March 2023, a UN Water Conference will be held on this issue in New York City.
Why do we need World Water Day?
World Water Day and the UN Water Action Decade should be regarded in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its water-related goals, adopted by the UN member states in 2015, particularly SDG 6 "Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all".
World Water Day is aimed at raising widespread public awareness of these global goals, their local impacts and the challenges related to their implementation. The goal is to motivate people to support implementing action. All countries are invited to use World Water Day to implement the UN recommendation and carry out appropriate initiatives at national level. Further information on World Water Day is available on the UN website.
Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 "Clean Water and Sanitation. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all."
Past themes of World Water Day
Each year, the United Nations selects a different theme for World Water Day.
Year | Theme |
---|---|
2023 | Accelerating Change |
2022 | Groundwater: Making the Invisible Visible |
2021 | Valuing Water |
2020 | Water and Climate Change |
2019 | Leaving no one behind – water and sanitation for all |
2018 | Nature for Water |
2017 | Waste Water |
2016 | Water and Jobs |
2015 | Water and Sustainable Development |
2014 | Water and Energy |
2013 | Water Cooperation |
2012 | Water and Food Security |
2011 | Water for Cities: Responding to the Urban Challenge |
2010 | Clean Water for a Healthy World |
2009 | Shared Water – Shared Opportunities |
2008 | Sanitation |
2007 | Coping with Water Scarcity |
2006 | Water and Culture |
2005 | Water for Life 2005 – 2015 |
2004 | Water and Disasters |
2003 | Water for the Future |
2002 | Water for Development |
2001 | Water and Health |
2000 | Water for the 21st Century |
1999 | Everyone Lives Downstream |
1998 | Groundwater: the Invisible Resource |
1997 | The World’s Water: Is There Enough? |
1996 | Water for Thirsty Cities |
1995 | Women and Water |
1994 | Caring for Our Water Resources is Everyone’s Business |