Band 7+: The charts below show how water was used in different countries in 2000. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting on the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

The pie charts illustrate how water is used for agricultural, industrial and domestic purposes in six different regions of the world.

Overall, agriculture is the main use of water in South America, Africa, Central Asia and South East Asia, while industry uses the largest proportion of water in North America and Europe. Domestic use accounts for the smallest percentage in most regions.

In North America and Europe, industrial use represents the biggest share of water consumption. In Europe, 53% of water is used by industry, compared with 32% for agriculture and 15% for domestic purposes. Similarly, in North America, industrial activities account for 48% of water use. Agriculture uses 39%, while only 13% is consumed by households. South America shows a different pattern, where agriculture takes up 71% of water consumption. Domestic use stands at 19%, whereas industry only uses 10%.

Agriculture is also the dominant sector in Africa, Central Asia and South East Asia. In Africa, 84% of water is used for farming, while domestic and industrial use account for 9% and 7% respectively. Central Asia has the highest figure for agricultural water use, at 88%, with only 7% used for domestic purposes and 5% for industry. In South East Asia, agriculture consumes 81% of water, while industry and households use 12% and 7% respectively. These figures show that agriculture play a very important role in these regions, and industrial use remain relatively low.