Supporters Lobby U.S. Legislators on Water for the World Act
27 Mar 2012 - 10:31 by OOSKAnews Correspondent
washington, dc, united states — To mark World Water Day on March 22, supporters from around the world gathered in the U.S. Capitol to lobby legislators to pass the Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2012.
The legislation aims to drive U.S. development and assistance programs to play a larger role in providing access to clean water and sanitation worldwide and strengthen foreign assistance in these areas.
This bill builds on the 2005 Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act.
In a World Water Day address, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called the act “a great accomplishment.”
“When nearly 2 million people die each year from preventable waterborne disease, clean water is critical if we’re going to be talking about achieving our global health goals,” Clinton said.
“Something as simple as better access to water and sanitation can improve the quality of life and reduce the disease burden for billions of people. When women and girls don’t have to spend 200 million hours a day… maybe they can go to school, maybe they can have more opportunities to help bring income in to the family. Reliable access to water is essential for feeding the hungry, running the industries that promote jobs, generating the energy that fuels national growth, and certainly, it is central when we think about how climate change will affect future generations.”
She called on the U.S. government and partners “to continue to be on the cutting edge of helping to solve the problems that are posed to so many millions of people everywhere in the world, including here at home.”
