2.2 billion people lack safely managed water, 4.2 billion people lack safely managed sanitation, 3 billion people lack basic handwashing facilities at home (source). That number of people without the basics is a crisis.
The knock-on benefits of providing safe water to a community is huge. Apart from just simply saving time, access to safe water makes healthy communities, boosts education by keeping kids in school and in turn increases standards of living.
Availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all is a human right and one of the 17 UN sustainable development goals to which we align ourselves.