Access to freshwater is increasingly recognized as essential for economic growth, security, human development, and employment.
However, many countries still lack sufficient investment in water infrastructure and measures to protect and preserve freshwater resources.
Poor water management remains a major challenge in many regions. Adequate and well-maintained water infrastructure also plays a critical role in strengthening climate adaptation and resilience.
A new insight report from the World Economic Forum, Bridging the €6.5 Trillion Water Infrastructure Gap: A Playbook, published in December 2025, highlights the significant global investment gap in water and sanitation infrastructure.
The report shows that closing this gap through increased investment could generate socio-economic returns that exceed those of many other sectors, including energy and digital technology.
The report argues that investing in water infrastructure is not only a social responsibility but also a major economic opportunity that can drive long-term growth, stability, and competitiveness.
The scale of the global water investment gap
According to the report, global spending needed to expand, modernize, and improve the sustainability of water infrastructure by 2040 totals approximately €11.4 trillion. This leaves a financing gap of around €6.5 trillion.
Bridging this gap could generate an additional €8.4 trillion in global GDP and support more than 206 million full-time jobs worldwide by 2040, equivalent to roughly 14 million jobs annually.
The report identifies four major areas where investment is urgently needed:
- Expanding equitable access to clean water for more than 2 billion people and sanitation services for over 3 billion people.
- Improving infrastructure resilience by modernizing aging and inefficient systems that currently lose about 30% of distributed water globally, while protecting nearly 4 billion people from climate-related impacts.
- Advancing water circularity through wastewater reuse and resource recovery from sludge and wastewater systems, which currently account for 12% of global freshwater withdrawals.
- Accelerating innovation through smart water technologies that optimize operations, reduce water withdrawals, and improve reuse efficiency.
The report also highlights major regional investment gaps:
- North America: €1.838 trillion required, with a €677 billion gap
- Europe: €1.710 trillion required, with a €695 billion gap
- Latin America: €757 billion required, with a €539 billion gap
- Middle East: €649 billion required, with a €384 billion gap
- Africa: €1.016 trillion required, with a €810 billion gap
- Asia: €5.184 trillion required, with a €3.265 trillion gap
- Oceania: €154 billion required, with a €54 billion gap
These figures demonstrate the uneven distribution of infrastructure needs and financing challenges across the world.
To close the gap by 2040, annual investment would need to increase by an additional €431 billion globally.
This would bring total annual spending to approximately €757 billion, or about €94 per person annually, equivalent to slightly less than 1% of global GDP in 2025.
Global case studies in water innovation
The report features 27 case studies from different countries and sectors that demonstrate scalable solutions for water infrastructure development.
One example is the €600 million Casablanca Green Desalination Plant in Morocco. Powered entirely by renewable wind energy through a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA), the facility is expected to produce 300 million cubic meters of water annually.
It will supply safe drinking water to 7.5 million people while supporting agricultural irrigation and reducing carbon emissions associated with conventional desalination methods. Economies of scale are expected to reduce production costs to as low as $0.40 per cubic meter.
Another example is the Goreangab Water Reclamation Plant in Windhoek. Located in a desert region, the city faces major water supply challenges. The facility uses advanced multi-barrier treatment processes that combine physical and chemical treatment systems with continuous monitoring to transform wastewater into safe drinking water.
Producing approximately 21,000 cubic meters per day, the plant supplies around 30% of the city’s water needs for its 400,000 residents and significantly strengthens long-term water security.
In Dubai, the €7 billion Tasreef project is set to modernize the emirate’s rainwater drainage system in response to the severe flooding in 2024. Scheduled for completion in 2033, the upgraded network will enhance stormwater drainage capacity by 700%.
This improvement will allow the city to manage over 20 million cubic meters of water each day, with peak flows reaching 230 cubic meters per second.
Investing in water for long-term resilience
The report concludes that transforming water infrastructure from a development constraint into a driver of sustainable growth and resilience will require coordinated policies, innovative financing, technological advancement, and strong global collaboration.
As climate pressures intensify and water demand rises worldwide, investing in sustainable and resilient water infrastructure will become increasingly essential to protect communities, support economic development, and strengthen long-term environmental security.
To view the complete report, please click on the link in the “Source” section below.
Source:
Bridging the €6.5 Trillion Water Infrastructure Gap: A Playbook. (2025 December). World Economic Forum. Retrieved from https://www.weforum.org/publications/bridging-the-6-5-trillion-water-infrastructure-gap-a-playbook/
Leave a Reply