The proportion of the world’s population with access to improved drinking water sources grew by 10 percent over a period roughly covering the past two decades, according to a United Nations study released Tuesday.

The study was released by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and UN World Health Organization (WHO).

The study found that between 1990 and 2008, the proportion of the world’s population with access to improved drinking water sources increased from 77 per cent to 87 percent.

LONDON, 18 November 2011 (IRIN) - It will take two centuries for sub-Saharan Africa to meet the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) to reduce by half the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation, according to NGO WaterAid, which calls on national leaders to commit 3.5 percent of their annual budget to the sector.

* More food possible without water crisis, experts say

* Africa has greatest potential for improvement

By Deborah Zabarenko, Environment Correspondent

WASHINGTON, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Major river basins in Africa, Asia and Latin America could sustainably double food production in some of the poorest parts of the globe in the next few decades, water experts reported on Monday.

But myriad competing claims on the water -- from industry, cities and power producers among others -- may stand in the way of a big increase in food production.

LONDON (AlertNet) – Efforts to feed an extra 2 billion people by mid-century could lead to widespread destruction of forests, wetlands and other natural systems that protect and regulate the world’s water, researchers warn.

But finding ways to boost agricultural production while protecting nature could produce big benefits, including reduced poverty and hunger in some of the world’s most fragile countries and hikes in food production that are sustainable beyond 2050.

How China's capital got in over its head, and what the city is doing to get its water crisis under control.