Water for Planet

The world has crossed the planetary boundary for freshwater—the threshold for how much water can be withdrawn without destabilizing Earth’s systems. Both green water (soil and vegetation moisture) and blue water (surface and groundwater) are under unsustainable pressure, disrupting the balance that regulates rainfall, runoff, and recharge.

Population growth, economic development, and land-use change are straining water resources, while climate change amplifies extremes. Rainfall is becoming more erratic, and natural buffers such as forests, wetlands, and floodplains are being lost or degraded. As a result, water is less effectively stored, absorbed, and released—reducing infiltration, accelerating runoff, and weakening the ecosystems that sustain flow.

The impacts of water stress are far-reaching.

At least 4 billion people—half the world’s population—face highly water-stressed conditions for at least one month each year. Floods and droughts are growing more frequent and severe, and water-related disasters now account for 70% of deaths from natural hazards.

Natural water storage in soils, wetlands, and aquifers has declined by 27 trillion cubic meters over the past 50 years, eroding a vital buffer against climate shocks. Groundwater—providing nearly half of global domestic water use and supporting 43% of irrigation—is essential for food security and resilience, yet its depletion is often invisible and difficult to reverse.

Every day, 2 million tons of waste enter rivers, lakes, and aquifers. Pollution from both natural and human sources degrades ecosystems and limits the availability of safe water for people and agriculture.

These physical pressures are compounded by systemic weaknesses. Water governance is fragmented across agencies and levels of government, with regulations on quality, groundwater, and ecosystems often weak or unenforced. Financing is insufficient: investments lag far behind needs, while underpricing and subsidies undermine efficiency and sustainability.

Transboundary water adds another layer of urgency. Nearly half of the world’s rivers and aquifers cross national borders, yet most lack legal and institutional frameworks for joint management. As water demand rises and variability intensifies, cooperation is essential to reduce conflict, build resilience, and unlock shared benefits.

When countries work together, regional investments can deliver regional gains: boosting energy production, strengthening food systems, restoring ecosystems, and fostering peace. Still, only 24 countries have operational arrangements for all shared basins, and far fewer have agreements for transboundary groundwater. Strengthening cooperation is therefore critical to achieving sustainable water security at scale.

To reduce water-related risks and manage resources more sustainably, the World Bank Group focuses on three interconnected priorities:

Reducing the likelihood and impact of floods and droughts.

Managing and restoring rivers and aquifers.

Strengthening ecological outcomes alongside economic productivity.

Reducing disaster risk starts with preparedness - strengthening early warning systems, hydrological monitoring, and hazard mapping to inform action before disaster strikes. Investments in both green and grey infrastructure—from rehabilitating aging dams to restoring degraded landscapes—expand storage capacity, buffer floods, and secure water during dry seasons.

The World Bank Group helps countries strengthen drought resilience through tools like the Drought Risk and Resilience Assessment Methodology (DRRA), a practical framework that helps governments proactively manage drought risks. Drawing on international best practices, it outlines measures to build resilience at every stage of the drought cycle. With this tool, governments can bring stakeholders together, target priority actions across sectors, optimize resources and investments, and reduce future economic losses.

Effective water management also depends on strong institutions, sound regulation, and transparent planning. The World Bank Group supports basin-level governance that enables fair allocation, monitoring, and valuation of water resources across users and sectors. This involves building institutional capacity—from local organizations to transboundary bodies—and strengthening the legal frameworks needed to manage shared resources and prevent conflict.

Protecting and restoring degraded water systems is essential for long-term security. The World Bank Group helps countries safeguard and regenerate catchments, rivers, and aquifers—the sources that sustain people, farms, and cities. This includes expanding wastewater treatment and reuse to reduce pollution and create alternative water supplies. Investments in river cleanup and ecosystem protection improve water quality, strengthen biodiversity, and advance sustainable development.

The World Bank Group's Global Facility for Transboundary Waters helps countries and regions establish the institutions, legal frameworks, and financing solutions required for sustainable joint management. It supports the development of basin organizations, benefit-sharing arrangements, and cross-border investment strategies, while promoting knowledge exchange on complex issues such as aquifer governance and hydropower trade-offs. By catalyzing cooperation, the Facility turns water from a potential source of tension into a driver of regional stability, growth, and resilience.

To support implementation, the World Bank Group partners with the private sector to unlock innovation and scale, while also advancing disaster risk finance tools—such as sustainability-linked and catastrophe bonds, green securitization, and incentives at federal, provincial, and local levels. These mechanisms help countries manage risk, attract investment, and channel resources into systems that deliver long-term resilience.

By integrating planning, restoration, and risk reduction—and aligning public and private finance—the World Bank Group supports countries in managing water not just as a resource, but as a foundation for climate resilience, economic growth, and environmental health.

Across regions and river basins, the World Bank Group is turning ambition into action—restoring degraded water systems, reducing disaster risks, and strengthening institutions for lasting resilience. The examples below show how integrated water management, regional cooperation, and targeted investments are delivering real benefits for people, economies, and ecosystems.

Regional Cooperation Builds Flood Resilience in the Western Balkans: After catastrophic floods in 2014 caused over $2.8 billion in damages in Bosnia and Herzegovina alone, the World Bank Group helped catalyze a regional approach to flood risk management in the Sava River Basin. With its support, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia developed a real-time Flood Forecasting and Warning System, enabling faster, coordinated emergency responses across borders. The system now integrates data from multiple countries to inform decisions and reduce disaster risks. It also strengthened collaboration through the International Sava River Basin Commission, laying the foundation for long-term resilience and stronger water governance across the region.

Modernizing Flood Management in Metro Manila: In the Philippines, the Metro Manila Flood Management Project (MMFMP) is protecting over 1 million people across 17 cities and municipalities from flood risks. Supported by the World Bank and co-financed by the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), the project is upgrading pumping stations, modernizing drainage systems with advanced Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition technology, and reducing waterway blockages through better solid waste management. More than 600 vulnerable families have been relocated to safer housing with access to clean water and sanitation.

The project also launched the country’s first Solid Waste Management Information System and piloted technologies such as granulators and brick-making facilities. By pairing infrastructure upgrades with community-based recycling and multi-stakeholder partnerships, MMFMP is creating a replicable model for sustainable urban flood resilience—saving lives and millions in economic losses each year.

Strengthening Water Management and Access in Uganda: The Water Management and Development Project in Uganda improved the integration of water resources planning, management, and development, while expanding access to water and sanitation in priority urban areas. More than 1 million people gained access to improved water sources, and 25,000 household piped connections were rehabilitated.