119 STAT. 2534
PUBLIC LAW 109–121—DEC. 1, 2005 gender equality, reducing child mortality, promoting environmental stability, improving the lives of slum dwellers, and strengthening national security. (12) Providing safe supplies of water and sanitation and hygiene improvements would save millions of lives by reducing the prevalence of water-borne diseases, water-based diseases, water-privation diseases, and water-related vector diseases. (13) Because women and girls in developing countries are often the carriers of water, lack of access to safe water and sanitation disproportionately affects women and limits women’s opportunities at education, livelihood, and financial independence. (14) Between 20 percent and 50 percent of existing water systems in developing countries are not operating or are operating poorly. (15) In developing world water delivery systems, an average of 50 percent of all water is lost before it gets to the enduser. (16) Every $1 invested in safe water and sanitation would yield an economic return of between $3 and $34, depending on the region. (17) Developing sustainable financing mechanisms, such as pooling mechanisms and revolving funds, is necessary for the long-term viability of improved water and sanitation services. (18) The annual level of investment needed to meet the water and sanitation needs of developing countries far exceeds the amount of Official Development Assistance (ODA) and spending by governments of developing countries, so facilitating and attracting greater public and private investment is essential. (19) Meeting the water and sanitation needs of the lowestincome developing countries will require an increase in the resources available as grants from donor countries. (20) The long-term sustainability of improved water and sanitation services can be advanced by promoting community level action and engagement with civil society. (21) Target 10 of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals is to reduce by half the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water by 2015. (22) The participants in the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development, held in Johannesburg, South Africa, including the United States, agreed to the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development which included an agreement to work to reduce by one-half ‘‘the proportion of people who are unable to reach or afford safe drinking water,’’ and ‘‘the proportion of people without access to basic sanitation’’ by 2015. (23) At the World Summit on Sustainable Development, the United States announced the Water for the Poor Initiative, committing $970 million for fiscal years 2003 through 2005 to improve sustainable management of fresh water resources and accelerate and expand international efforts to achieve the goal of cutting in half by 2015 the proportion of people who are unable to reach or to afford safe drinking water. (24) United Nations General Assembly Resolution 58/217 (February 9, 2004) proclaimed ‘‘the period from 2005 to 2015
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