Water as a human right and source of conflict : case study : the Nile basin with focus on Egypt

Abstract

There should be enough water for everybody. The problem is its uneven distribution. One-sixth of the population has no adequate access to clean water. Twice as much is without sanitation, although 80% of all illnesses are water-related. Politicians still highly underestimate the water crisis caused by scarcity and waste. Water is the blue gold of the 21st century. Some international institutions and a few multinationals believe that the solution for the water crisis would be to convert water into an economic good. This is particularly problematic for arid and downstream countries, which highly depend on external sources. The privatization of water marginalizes poor people, making them even more unproductive. Since we all depend on water, there is no way but to proclaim the human right to water. Individual states have to retain regulatory power in the water sector. The water crisis is imminent where rivers are shared by several countries. In conjunction with water scarcity, a demographic explosion and. boundary disputes, these problems are believed to have the potential for future water wars. However, cooperation between riparians is increasing. If water basins were regarded as ecological regions rather than political ones and if water issues were treated separately, tension would diminish and a river might become a path to peace.