When water fails, everything follows

Water insecurity remains a big concern and must be considered a present national emergency.

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As global reports reveal billions without safe water and sanitation, about 40 million Filipinos are without access to fresh water and an estimated 55 million lacking clean, potable supply, a development that will have far-reaching social, economic, and moral consequences.

Water is life, yet policy appears to have treated it as an afterthought.

The Philippine government must begin by recognizing water security as a central pillar of national security. This means moving beyond fragmented programs and short-term fixes toward a coherent, long-range water strategy anchored in science, equity, and accountability. Watersheds must be protected as critical infrastructure. Decades of deforestation, mining, and unregulated land conversion have degraded the natural systems that store and filter water. Enforcing environmental laws, restoring forests, and protecting aquifers are not anti-development moves; they are prerequisites for sustainable growth.