The WWDR 2014 on Water and Energy is now an annual and thematic report with a focus on different strategic water issues each year. It is shorter in the order of 100 pages with a standardized structure and data and case studies annexes related to the theme. The WWDR 2014 will be launched during the main World Water Day celebrations in Tokyo, Japan on 21 March 2014. Water and energy are closely interconnected and highly interdependent. Trade-offs need to be managed to limit negative impacts and foster opportunities for synergy. Water and energy have crucial impacts on poverty alleviation both directly, as a number of the Millennium Development Goals depend on major improvements in access to water, sanitation, power and energy sources, and indirectly, as water and energy can be binding constraints on economic growth the ultimate hope for widespread poverty reduction. This fifth edition of the United Nations World Water Development Report (WWDR 2014) seeks to inform decision-makers