Correction to: Nature Sustainability https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-020-0593-7, published online 24 August 2020.

In the version of this Comment originally published, Fig. 1 contained both unpublished data held in the Household Water Insecurity Experiences (HWISE) database and data previously published by Young et al.3. Figure 1 and its caption have been replaced, and two sentences in the main text have also been modified, to remove the unpublished data and include only data published by Young et al.3. Additionally, a citation of Staddon et al.4, which was published shortly before the original Comment, has now been included in the first paragraph of the main text, with subsequent references renumbered.

The Fig. 1 caption ‘Proportion of households across 29 sites in 23 low- and middle-income countries that were unable to wash their hands in the previous month because of problems with water. Data are from ref. 3 (n = 8,081).’ was amended to ‘Proportion of households across 23 sites in 20 low- and middle-income countries that were unable to wash their hands in the previous month because of problems with water. Data are from ref. 3 (n = 6,637).’

The second sentence of the first paragraph, ‘A recent cross-cultural study of household water insecurity experiences found that nearly one in four of 8,081 randomly sampled households across 29 sites in 23 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) were unable to wash their hands in the previous month (Fig. 1)3.’ was amended to ‘A recent cross-cultural study of household water insecurity experiences found that nearly one in four of 6,637 randomly sampled households across 23 sites in 20 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) were unable to wash their hands in the previous month (Fig. 1)3,4.’

In the second paragraph of the section ‘Water accessibility and competing demands’, the fourth sentence ‘For instance, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Colombia are classified as ‘water-rich’ areas11, yet many households in these locations experienced problems with water that limited handwashing ability (Fig. 1).’ was amended to ‘For instance, Brazil has abundant water resources12, yet many households there experienced problems with water that limited handwashing ability (Fig. 1).’

The changes to Fig. 1 and text amendments do not change the key points made in the Comment. D.M.H., I.L., F.M. and S.K. were unaware of the use of unpublished data and of the paper by Staddon et al.4.

References

3. Young, S. L. et al. BMJ Glob. Health 4, e001750 (2019).

4. Staddon, C. et al. Water Int. 45, 416–422 (2020).

12. Plummer, R., Velaniškis, J., de Grosbois, D., Kreutzwiser, R. D. & de Loë, R. Environ. Sci. Policy 13, 535–548 (2010).