Links to UN bodies

Links to site map

Main Links

Water/Freshwater

World Water Day 2010

logo

Latest Publications

coverHashimoto Action Plan II



coverKey Messages on Climate Change & Water for COP 15


AfricaSan Awards competition

Climate Change

Winners Announced!
Submissions guidelines

The African Ministers’ Council on Water (AMCOW) is pleased to announce the very first AfricaSan Awards competition winners

The awards are dedicated to recognizing outstanding efforts and achievements in sanitation and hygiene in Africa which result in large-scale, sustainable behavior changes and tangible impacts

logoThe aim is to raise the profile of sanitation and hygiene by drawing attention to successful approaches, promoting excellence in leadership, innovation and sanitation and hygiene improvements in Africa

IYS

IYS ReviewOn World Toilet Day, an "Unveiling Campaign" for the International Year of Sanitation began

This campaign aims to incrementally unveil the submissions received as a result of an international call towards sharing relevant actions and activities

The call was disseminated earlier this year. The response was great! Check out the website for relevant videos

Op-Ed

IYS ReviewAfrica's Water & Sanitation Strides
- by the Prince of Orange, Chair of the UN SG’s Advisory Board on Water & Sanitation [Eng] [Fr]

Nikhil Chandavarkar (Secretary of UN-Water) speaks about how water will be addressed at CSD-17 and about his ideas regarding the future of UN-Water

Today it is widely recognized that an integrated approach to freshwater management offers the best means of reconciling competing demands with supply and a framework where effective operational actions can be taken. It is thus valuable for all countries at all stages of development.

This is the focus of chapter 18 of Agenda 21. Further recommendations to support implementation of chapter 18 were taken by the Commission on Sustainable Development at its second (1994)  and sixth (1998) sessions; by the United Nations General Assembly at its nineteenth Special Session to review the implementation of Agenda 21 (1997) and by the World Summit on Sustainable Development (2002) through its Plan of Implementation.

The Commission on Sustainable Development, at its twelfth session (2004) reviewed and assessed implementation of three thematic issues, including water and sanitation. Most recently, in 2005, at its thirteenth session, the Commission explored policy options for furthering implementation on the issues of water and sanitation as well as on human settlements as reflected in its decision.

It was also decided to monitor and follow up the implementation of CSD-13 decisions on water and sanitation, and their interlinkages in 2008 (CSD-16) and 2012 (CSD-20). A questionnaire on Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) and Water Efficiency Plans (word) | (pdf) was developed in partnership with the IWRM taskforce of UN-Water to facilitate national reporting for the review during CSD-16.

Water for Life Decade:

The “Water for Life” Decade was launched on 22 March 2005, on World Water Day.  The Decade aims to promote efforts to fulfill international commitments made on water and water-related issues by 2015, placing special emphasis on the involvement and participation of women in these efforts. The year 2003 was earlier chosen by the General Assembly as the International Year of Freshwater.

Secretary-General’s Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation:

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan established an Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation in 2004 to galvanize global action on these issues. Former Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto of Japan agreed to serve as Chair of the Board.

Millennium Development Goals:

Millennium Development Declaration (2000) called for the world to halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water as well as the proportion of people who do not have access to basic sanitation. It called upon the international community to combat desertification and mitigate the effects of drought and floods; to develop integrated water resources management and water efficiency plans by 2005; and to support developing countries and countries with economies in transition in their efforts to monitor and assess the quantity and quality of water resources.

Other Initiatives:

The emphasis on action-oriented policies and implementation has led to two further initiatives that complement the WSSD Plan of Implementation: these are Partnership initiatives and the WEHAB Initiative.

Project execution and policy advisory services:

The Division for Sustainable Development, through its Water, Natural Resources and SIDS Branch, provides project execution and policy advisory services at the request of interested countries to promote and support integrated water resources management at the international, national, regional, local and basin levels. These services are based on a contemporary technical cooperation model that links current political discussions with the realities in the field.