The following list shows the estimated maximum amount of water available to countries from both external and internal renewable sources. Source data was compiled by the Pacific Institute and, in some cases, was updated in 2006 by AQUASTAT.
The data is less than precise because estimating methods vary by country and are calculated over different time periods. For example, estimates like those for Canada were done over 20 years ago. Also, a country’s international water treaty commitments are excluded.
Still, the statistical summary gives a basic perpective on the ten richest countries in terms of the world’s total freshwater resources, estimated at some 55,273 cubic kilometers per year (ckpy).
- Brazil … 8,233 ckpy (14.9% of world total)
- Russia … 4,498 (8.1%)
- Canada … 3,300 (6%)
- United States … 3,069 (5.6%)
- Indonesia … 2,838 (5.1%)
- China … 2,830 (5.1%)
- Colombia … 2,132 (3.9%)
- Peru … 1,913 (3.5%)
- India … 1,908 (3.5%)
- Democratic Republic of Congo … 1,283 (2.3%)
The above 10 nations account for about 60% of the world’s total freshwater supply. But while these countries may be rich in water resources, other studies rank a nation’s water-richness by other factors.
Water Poverty Index
According to the World Water Forum, the international Water Poverty Index (WPI) scores the top 10 water-rich nations on 5 categories. The categories are: the size of a country’s total water resources; how available those resources are to the population; how developed the country’s water infrastructure and delivery systems are; how efficiently or wastefully a country uses its water; and how well a country manages any environmental impact to its water.
Listed in ascending order below are the countries scoring the highest marks on the WPI.
- Finland
- Canada
- Iceland
- Norway
- Guyana
- Suriname
- Austria
- Ireland
- Sweden
- Switzerland.
Many countries on the freshwater resources top 10 list are absent from the WPI top 10 list.
For example, America finished 32nd principally because of inefficient or wasteful water use practices and because vast areas particularly in the American West are arid or semi-arid. The fact is that the U.S. has the highest water consumption per capita in the world.
In contrast, smaller developing countries including Guyana and Surinam are much more effective in using their abundant water resources.
Global Water Supply
How important is it for countries including those with large freshwater supplies to improve their rank on the WPI?
An analysis from Aqua Terra Asset Managemen t reveals that global demand for water will double every 21 years. Within 50 years, water shortages will affect half of the world’s population living in 80 countries including America. Since water is costly to transport over long distances, countries are well-advised to manage their water resources and systems like Finland – and even Guyana and Surinam.
Daniel Workman - A senior business and finance writer who also does French translations, notably international trade and insurance materials.
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