New publication and e-learning course: SDG Indicator 6.4.1 - Change in water-use efficiency over time
This week the FAO Land & Water Division launched a new publication and e-learning course on SDG Indicator 6.4.1 - 'Change in water-use efficiency over time'
The new publication, which is the second of a new series of water resources papers on SDG 6.4, is intended to provide suggestions for the interpretation of the indicator 6.4.1. In particular, it focuses on the concept of economic decoupling from water-use, and its application in policy making.
The evolution in water-use and water-use efficiency in four selected regions: Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, is discussed. Particular attention is given to the evolution in water-use, water-use efficiency and related drivers in two groups of countries, including major developed economies and newly industrialized countries, and in different economic sectors.
The relation of water-use efficiency with economic growth and access to safe drinking water is analyzed and discussed in the context of the literature on the Environmental Kuznets Curve applied to water resources. A country-based example is presented to illustrate some aspects of these issues and a few concluding remarks are provided.
The e-learning course, which can be accessed via an internet browser, or can be downloaded locally to your computer, provides guidance on the rationale and main characteristics of Indicator 6.4.1, and on how to compute the two dimensions constituting the indicator: the hydrologic and the economic component. It also highlights possible challenges related to data availability, and the impact that monitoring results may have on national decision-making and identification of development policies.