On World Water Day, March 22, 2011, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and World Bank President Robert Zoellick signed a memorandum of understanding committing to closer collaboration between the World Bank Group and the United States Government on efforts related to water.

Secretary Clinton used the opportunity to reaffirm the United States’ commitment to water issues around the world:

And to all of you who are here because you know that this is such a critical issue that cuts across every single part of development that one can imagine, I thank you for helping to raise the visibility of water as one of the most important issues. Why? Because the water crisis is a health crisis, it’s a farming crisis, it’s an economic crisis, it’s a climate crisis, and increasingly, it is a political crisis. And therefore, we must have an equally comprehensive response.

The video of Secretary Clinton’s remarks can be found below, and the full transcript is available from the State Department’s website.