Water Should Be Free at All Eateries, Health Think Tank Says

By Danial Martinus  •  03 Jul 2026 in News

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Picture this: You just finished a nice meal with some friends at a restaurant you’ve wanted to dine at for a very long time. You ask for the bill, and suddenly you realise you’ve been charged upwards of RM1 for a glass of water. You’re not happy with it, but you pay for it anyway simply because you’ve got no choice.

The Galen Centre for Health and Social Policy, a Kuala Lumpur-based health think tank, believes drinking water at all eateries should be free, which is pretty much in line with their goal of promoting health as a human right, not a privilege.

Free drinking water should be a legal obligation for eateries, they say

The organisation has called on the government and local authorities to introduce legislation that mandates all eateries (restaurants, cafés, food courts, mamak restaurants, fast-food outlets, and more) to provide free drinking water for patrons.

The argument for this is pretty simple, according to CEO Azrul Mohd Khalib.

“Access to free drinking water should not depend on whether a customer is willing or able to buy bottled water, a sweetened drink, or a hot beverage,” he says.

“In a country facing a worsening obesity and non-communicable disease crisis, plain drinking water must be made the easiest, most accessible, and most affordable choice.”

According to the National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2023, one in five adults don’t drink enough water daily, while other sweetened drinks have a larger presence in daily meals. If water was free at all eateries, it’s more likely to become the default drink of choice.

While you might argue that most people can afford to pay RM1 or RM2 for a small glass of water, others might think it’s not worth it, thus choosing something else to drink. And then there are those who simply cannot afford to pay for what’s considered a basic necessity.

But the preference of sweetened drinks over water is made worse when the latter is expensive, especially when bottled mineral water is the only choice that many restaurants offer.

“A requirement for free drinking water would not solve the problem of non-communicable diseases. However, it is an important baseline measure,” Azrul says. “It sends a clear public health signal that water is the default beverage, not an optional extra.”

What are your thoughts on being charged for plain drinking water?

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