Brief

Promoting Water Valuation for Urban Sustainable Development in Asia

Policy guidance on incorporating water valuation in policymaking for urban sustainable development in Asia.

Date Published: 14 Jul 2025

Authors: Marcin Pawel Jarzebski Martiwi Diah Setiawati Yasushi Katsuma Kensuke Fukushi Nidhi Nagabhatla Daniel Karthe Pankaj Kumar Made Sudarma Geetha Mohan Binaya Kumar Mishra Serena Caucci Kazuhiko Takemoto Jian Pu Saroj Chapagain Akio Takemoto

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Photo: ADB via Flickr

This policy brief provides guidance for policymakers to incorporate urban water valuation, to alleviate pressure on water resources and maintain water quality in water-scarce regions in Asia. It outlines how water valuation — the process of recognizing, measuring and incorporating the multiple values of water — can advance integrated approaches to address water challenges. It recommends reflecting site-specific and local factors in strategies and policies, and strengthening partnerships between UN agencies and Member States for technology transfer, capacity building and mutual learning on the value of water.

Highlights

Water valuation is pivotal for sustainable development in water-scarce regions and high-consumption cities in Asia. It enables efficient design of circular water conservation, including water reuse, to alleviate pressure on scarce water resources and maintain water quality through reduced pollution loads, decentralized treatment solutions and enhanced alignment of water supply with ecological and social priorities.

Recommendations

Incorporate water valuation in long-term policies and budgeting for sustainable development in Asia.
Reflect site-specific and local factors in strategies and policies for reducing wastage and promoting responsible water usage to support circular water conservation.
Strengthen cross-sectoral collaboration and partnerships between UN agencies and Member States for technology transfer, capacity building and mutual learning on the value of water to accelerate progress on SDG 6.