Yes — the UN's official SDG 6.4.2 water-stress indicator, compiled by FAO AQUASTAT and fetched live from the World Bank's open data API.

No. The World Bank open data API is public, key-less and CORS-enabled, so the browser calls it directly.

Does it work offline?

No. It fetches live from the World Bank, so it needs an internet connection; offline it shows a short notice.

Yes — free, no download, in your browser.

How can water stress be over 100%?

By withdrawing desalinated seawater and non-renewable 'fossil' groundwater. Kuwait's roughly 3,850% means it uses vastly more freshwater than its renewable sources supply in a year.

Water Stress Board Screensaver

The Water Stress Board screensaver ranks countries by freshwater withdrawals as a percentage of available renewable freshwater — the UN's SDG 6.4.2 water-stress indicator, compiled by FAO AQUASTAT — live from the World Bank's open data API. It's free, needs an internet connection, and ESC exits.

How the Water Stress Board screensaver works

The saver calls the World Bank's key-less open data API for the water-stress indicator (ER.H2O.FWST.ZS) with mrnev=1 — 178 countries report, currently with 2022 data.

Rows are colour-coded by severity: the accent colour below 40%, amber for high stress (40–80%), red for critical stress (80% and up).

Values can exceed 100% — desalination and fossil aquifers let countries withdraw more than nature returns — so bars clamp at a 120% mark with a 100% guide line, while the printed numbers stay real.

It refreshes hourly; FAO updates the underlying AQUASTAT series on its own annual cycle.

A worked example

Kuwait tops the board near 3,850% — withdrawing dozens of times its renewable freshwater, thanks to desalination — with the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Libya also far past the red 100% line, while the Congo basin sits near zero. It pairs well with the Drought Monitor in Multi-view.

Settings & tips

Countries shown — how many ranked rows to display (10–25).
The 100% guide line is the honesty marker: any bar crossing it means withdrawals exceed the country's renewable supply.
Severity colours follow the standard SDG bands — 40% is 'high stress', 80% is 'critical'.

Frequently asked questions

Is this real data?: Yes — the UN's official SDG 6.4.2 water-stress indicator, compiled by FAO AQUASTAT and fetched live from the World Bank's open data API.
Is a key needed?: No. The World Bank open data API is public, key-less and CORS-enabled, so the browser calls it directly.
Does it work offline?: No. It fetches live from the World Bank, so it needs an internet connection; offline it shows a short notice.
Is it free?: Yes — free, no download, in your browser.
How can water stress be over 100%?: By withdrawing desalinated seawater and non-renewable 'fossil' groundwater. Kuwait's roughly 3,850% means it uses vastly more freshwater than its renewable sources supply in a year.

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