Increasing demands for water are causing water resource problems in many parts of the world. Water scarcity is a fact of life in many countries and will become more widespread in the future.

WMO, the World Bank, and other donors launched the World Hydrological Cycle Observing System (WHYCOS) in 1993 to improve the availability of “real-time” hydrological data. WHYCOS aids national efforts to provide information required for wise water resource management.

Excerpt of the UNESCO/WMO joint conference on Hydrology

Delegates to the Conference debated the plans of the two Organisations in the water sector. Subjects covered a vast area, ranging from increasing the understanding of various hydrological processes, up to environmental concerns and approaches for mitigating the impacts of natural and man-made disasters. Particular emphasis was placed on education and technology transfer programmes.

There was complete agreement on the gravity of the situation facing the world and on the need for the United Nations system of organisations to focus its activities on vulnerable areas where their efforts will have greatest impact on alleviating the stress that water shortages, floods and pollution put on so many millions of the world's poor.

The participants called upon WMO and UNESCO:

• to help countries to collect the basic information that they need in order to confront this situation;
• to encourage the scientific community to put its weight behind these efforts, and;
• to help develop the facilities for training the specialists and the water managers who are needed to interpret the technical information in terms that policy-makers can use in making the many difficult decisions that lie ahead.