The European Water Initiative celebrates its 10th anniversary at the same time as the international community can celebrate that the Millennium Development Goal on sustainable access to drinking water has been achieved, five years before the deadline of 2015. So, the EU helped more than 32 million people to gain access to improved water supply and 9 million to sanitation facilities.

On the 10th anniversary of the European Water Initiative, the Commissioner Piebalgs announced that the Millennium Development Goal on sustainable access to drinking water has been achieved. However, the remaining Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) especially sanitation, remain off-track and the EU will intensify its efforts to achieve the goals on time. In August 2011, the EU reaffirmed its commitment to meeting the Millennium Development Goals.

With regard to the European Water Initiative, European action has already helped more than 32 million people to gain access to improved water supply and 9 million to sanitation facilities. The EU has announced that it will continue to support international cooperation and to promote innovative approaches reinforcing the link between water and other sectors such as agriculture and energy.

The creation of the EU-ACP Water Facility in 2004 is one of the examples of success promoted by the European Water Initiative. It is a dedicated funding facility that has made €700 million available for water projects so far, in African, Caribbean and Pacific Countries. Alongside other European programmes, around €3 billion have been committed overall to activities related to water and sanitation projects between 2003 and 2010. During this period, the EU development assistance to the water and sanitation sector has almost tripled.