This number of people have died from water borne disease so far this year
The Reality: Lack of access is a huge obstacle for development, both for society and individuals, and it creates a burden
SDG 6 targets are formidable goals for many countries, and marginalised people need help to access water and sanitation
One fifth of the global population (2 billion) people do not have access to safe and sustainable water and 3.6 billion of the world’s population do not have access to safely managed sanitation[1]. Marginalised people do not always have the resources to build expensive or centralised infrastructure. They are hit with extremes in temperature, droughts and floods due to the impact of climate change, and increased demand and pollution related to rapidly increasing populations. Water and sanitation are very low on the political agenda and the few resources available do not tend to go to the vulnerable people that need help. Women and girls are negatively impacted by this gap nearly everywhere.
A solution
A simple step-by-step approach on how to use international law at local level, to identify the people that are being left behind, and the pathway for reaching them through advocacy, integration of simplified policy implementation and monitoring of targeted disaggregated data (by gender and marginalised group).
A simple to follow step-by-step guide for different countries to improve their achievement of SDG 6. A human rights-based community approach needs to be adopted, with tailored solutions that are environmentally sustainable, that prioritise the unheard, poorer and marginalised segments of society and give women a greater control over water management. The solutions require us to work with local authorities and relevant stakeholders to understand their challenges. International human rights can be used as a framework to integrate systems into local policy, with allocation of responsibilities and budget, and monitoring of disaggregated data.
[1] JMP WASH data 2021
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In today’s Sustainable Development Goals Agenda, the human rights to water and sanitation are embedded, but not assured. We are working towards safeguarding these rights, such that no-one is left behind.
Human Right 2 Water brings water dialogue, innovative research, improved water cooperation and sustainable water governance to the global agenda. We use expert knowledge on how the human rights to water and sanitation should be integrated into law and policy to realise safe and sustainable access to water and sanitation for all people, including vulnerable and marginalised people. Our organisation strives to support governments, civil society, water and sanitation service providers and utilities to accelerate the realisation of Sustainable Development Goal 6 on Water, especially for the people that continue to be left behind.
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The implications of COVID-19 are terrible for everyone, but especially difficult for the poorer sections of society that might not have access to clean running water and facilities for general hygiene.
National emergency plans often overlook the more vulnerable members of society – even in western states. There needs to be an imperative to improve conditions for these people immediately, for their own sakes, and to control infection rates. We are already working on solutions for this crisis – please contact us on info@humanright2water.org if you would like to contribute to this effort.
In today’s Sustainable Development Goals Agenda, the human rights to water and sanitation are embedded, but not assured. We are working towards safeguarding these rights, such that no-one is left behind.
Human Right 2 Water brings water dialogue, innovative research, improved water cooperation and sustainable water governance to the global agenda.
We use expert knowledge on how the human rights to water and sanitation should be integrated into law and policy to realise safe and sustainable access to water and sanitation for all people, including vulnerable and marginalised people.
Our organisation strives to support governments, civil society, water and sanitation service providers and utilities to accelerate the realisation of Sustainable Development Goal 6 on Water, especially for the people that continue to be left behind.
