Water: Together we can care for it! A case study of a watershed conservation fund for Quito, Ecuador

The world is three-quarters water and the Latin American and Caribbean region is considered to have comparatively greater availability of this resource: an estimated 30% of the world's fresh water. But human activities are besieging this wealth of water, threatening both its quality and quantity.

Ecuador is not unfamiliar with this reality. The internal water resources available yearly are estimated at 314 km3, which for 1995 represents a volume of 27,400 m3 per inhabitant. This extraordinary figure is in sharp contrast with the distribution of water. In 1996, according to data from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, only 61% of the population had access to drinking water. The country is also characterized by a high rate of deforestation, rapid population growth (with a tendency toward urbanization), and continual dumping of untreated refuse into streams and rivers. All of the above highlight the need for measures to protect the sources of Ecuador’s waters, the watersheds, in order to ensure a steady supply of clean water.