The State of Global Water Resources 2024, Published by WMO in 2025, offers a quantitative overview of global freshwater availability, extremes, and hydrological trends, covering rivers, lakes, groundwater, soil moisture, snow, and ice. It helps decision-makers identify global water hotspots and manage resources effectively.
Key Insights
Monitoring & Data Expansion: River discharge stations rose from 14 in 2021 to 2,777 in 2024; 37,406 groundwater stations across 47 countries included; new chapters cover precipitation, drought indices, and lake conditions.
Critical 2024 Conditions: Hottest year on record (+1.55°C) with strong El Niño effects; river discharge abnormal in 60% of catchments; severe drought in South America; extreme floods in Europe and southern Brazil; groundwater declines in NW India and parts of the US highlight over-abstraction.
Data & Institutional Gaps: Streamflow, groundwater, and water quality remain under-monitored; Africa and Asia underrepresented (3% of stations); soil moisture data very limited.
Recommendations: Enhance data sharing and monitoring, build national capacity, and provide actionable water data to strengthen resilience against floods, droughts, and climate change.
