The 2025 Water-Stress Forecast

Projections about water stress by 2025 can now be assessed as historical projections, not future events. Current sources distinguish between indicators: roughly half of humanity experiences severe water scarcity for at least part of the year, while about 10% of the population lives in countries with high or critical water stress, measured as withdrawals relative to available resources. These are different definitions and cannot be directly equated with the older “two-thirds” projection.