FAO’s database on water resources and agricultural water management around the world provides standardized data for around 180 different parameters, including data on water uses by sector, source and wastewater generated.
It draws on expertise from all regions of the world, and provides information that enables the monitoring of SDG 6 (clean water and sanitation).
6 May 2019: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) launched an updated version of its online database on water resources and agricultural water management around the world. AQUASTAT provides the statistics that enable the monitoring of progress toward sustainable management of water resources. The information available on AQUASTAT relates especially to indicators for SDG target 6.4 on water stress and water use efficiency.
AQUASTAT has been in existence since 1960. The updated database provides standardized data for around 180 different parameters, as well as many educational articles, reports, country and river basin profiles, maps, spatial data, and tools for users to generate their own information products. AQUASTAT includes data on water uses by sector, source and wastewater generated. It also contains information about the extent and type of irrigation, the location and features of dams and water-related institutions, policies and legislation.
Announcing the update, FAO explained that the database draws on expertise from all regions of the world, and provides information that enables the monitoring of SDG 6 (clean water and sanitation).
Among the international organizations, UN entities and other institutions that use AQUASTAT data are UN-Water, the World Bank, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). [UN-Water News Article] [AQUASTAT]