Water scarcity and humanitarian action: key emerging trends and challenges
OCHA occasional policy briefing series, no. 4:
This paper highlights the dominant trends affecting water scarcity and offers an initial analysis of its potential implications for humanitarian action in terms of the: (i) impact on vulnerability and humanitarian caseloads; and (ii) impact on operational environments. Among other recommendations, it calls to pursue further research and analysis on slow-onset disasters, and advocates for disaster risk reduction and adaptation funds to build bottom-up resiliency and meet the challenges of water security under climate change. It aims to provide a starting point to prompt initial discussion and advance joint analysis within OCHA and among other key actors to understand better and project with more accuracy the implications of water scarcity for international humanitarian action.