This event will highlight the importance of building resilient water and sanitation services, with a particular emphasis on the most vulnerable and marginalized communities. Resilient WASH services can help people build resilience to climate change impacts and reduce their overall vulnerability.

Join us as we:

(a) present a global strategic framework for climate resilient water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH);

(b) explore the key role for utilities in managing wastewater and sanitation to improve water quality; and

(c) discuss how the fragmentation of water sector actors (i.e., Water Resources Management (WRM) actors and WASH services actors) can be overcome through climate action.

As a result, the event will have raised awareness among policy-makers and decision-makers to foster closer collaboration and policy coherence to adequately consider water in climate measures.

AGENDA
Welcoming and introduction
Climate resilient water, sanitation & hygiene: A global strategic framework: Silvia Gaya, UNICEF
Case study 1: on the resilience of infrastructure and services (TBC)
Case study 2: Madagascar on multiple uses of water and linking to agriculture.
Case Study 3: Clean Green Pakistan Programme –A Climate Resilient WASH Model: Mr. Muhammad Irfan Tariq, Director General (Env &CC), Ministry of Climate Change Pakistan (TBC)
Case Study 4: Nepal Case study. Building community resilience through inclusive WASH: A case of federal Nepal (TBC)
WATER, SANITATION, WASTEWATER AND CLIMATE: THE ROLE OF UTILITIES: Framing Presentation: Mr. Alexander Verbeek, Director of the Institute for Planetary Security


READ MORE
Action must be taken now if the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets on water supply, sanitation and hygiene are to be achieved in the face of climate change. This will only be possible with effective government led climate action, which includes attention to water, sanitation and hygiene, stronger support for climate-resilient water and sanitation services, and a stronger collaboration between those responsible for water resource management and water users.

Climate planers and water resource managers need to understand and acknowledge the adaptation needs derived from the complex task of providing resilient sanitation solutions to deprived and marginalised communities living in high flood risk areas, and providing safe and resilient drinking water and hygiene services to rural or dispersed deprived populations exposed to increasing incidence of droughts, floods or affected by salinization of coastal aquifers. It is important to understand how climate change and water quality are interrelated: climate extremes affect the bacterial and chemical pollution of water and threaten sanitation infrastructure.

At the same time, the incremental cost of ensuring new water and sanitation assets are climate-resilient is estimated to be between $0.9 billion and $2.3 billion a year. While not negligible, these investments represent around 1 per cent of baseline infrastructure investment needs and would reduce the risk of damage to new infrastructure by 50 per cent. The potential benefits of incorporating resilience into water and sanitation are therefore enormous.

This bidirectional climate – water/sanitation work is best accomplished through multi-stakeholder processes and collaboration. The private sector and civil society can play a key role and support efforts to underpin effective leadership. Also, and despite uncertainty surrounding climate change impacts on the water sector, one thing is for sure, intersectoral cooperation in the water sector, looking at water as a resource and water as a basic social service is a “no regrets” adaptation option. Further, the energy use and the level of collection and treatment of faecal waste have appreciable effects on climate change mitigation.

If delivered in the right way, water, sanitation and hygiene services can improve people’s resilience to climate change directly – for example, by enabling access to water at times of scarcity, or managing wastewater and sanitation to improve water quality. Safe and inclusive sanitation systems not only support health and dignity of the population directly; safe sanitation also reduces risks of disease outbreaks from faecal contamination of water during floods. Water and sanitation services can also support resilience indirectly – for example, where it enables increased economic activity, such as small-scale agriculture or small-scale businesses, and investments in resilience-building activities, such as better housing or education. The contributions to peace and stability of climate resilient access to water and sanitation services in areas highly exposed to climate hazards is also notable.

Convenors
UNICEF, UN-Habitat, etc

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