Water target met - but poorest still thirsting for change

The Millennium Development Goal on water has been met, but the target on sanitation is still a long way from being realised, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.

Research from the World Health Organisation and Unicef reveals that aid is working and that over two billion people have gained access to clean water to drink since 1990. Watch our film showing how clean water transforms lives >

This is a major global achievement and we believe that the UK government should feel pride in the part it has played to get us to this milestone.

No time for complacency

This is a real success, but there is no time for complacency. We cannot forget that even now nearly 800 million people are still without access to clean safe water and a further 2.5 billion still live without toilets.

Although the water target has been met, the sanitation target remains off-track globally and based on current rates of progress won't be met until 2026.

It is only by investing in both water and sanitation that the full health benefits of these services will be realised for the world's poorest people.

 still waiting foo

• 2.5 billion people still lack basic sanitation
• Nearly 800 million people still lack access to clean water
• More than 40% of all people globally who lack access to drinking water live in sub-Saharan Africa
• Only 19 out of 50 countries in sub-Saharan Africa are on track to meet the target by 2015

Thirst for change: call on the PM now for clean water and safe sanitation for all >

Diarrhoea is the single biggest killer of children in sub-Saharan Africa and on current trends it will be 350 years before Africa has universal access to both water and sanitation. As always, it is the poorest that will have to wait.

Campaigns manager Clare Lyons said, "The successes we have seen came about through the combination of political will and investment. But the poorest communities are still thirsting for change. It is vital that world leaders now commit to ensuring clean water and safe sanitation for all."

Read more about the truth behind the statistics on our blog >