Human Development Report 2006

The new Human Development Report from the United Nations contains some wrenching statistics. Some 1.2 billion people lack access to safe water and 2.6 billion are without access to sanitation. Almost two million children a year die as a result.

However, there are reasons to be wary about the framework in which these statistics are set. Kevin Watkins, the lead author, used to work for Oxfam. It also includes a contribution by Gordon Brown, the British Chancellor, on playing the financial markets (by issuing long-term bonds) to fund development. More generally the Millennium Development Goals relating to water, as with the other official goals, are exceedingly meagre.