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[Zoom Call] Ten years of the human rights to water and sanitation
8 July 2020 @ 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM UTC+0
FreeTen years of the human rights to water and sanitation: A transformative pathway for the SDGs and COVID-19 response
8 July 2020, 8:00 EDT / 12:00 UCT
Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83155545912?pwd=azM1QTlEbUtDc1kzQ1UyWlBvbmFyZz09
Meeting password: 815843
Simultaneous interpretation provided in French and Spanish
In 2020, the international community marks the ten-year anniversary of the United Nations General Assembly’s recognition of water and sanitation as universal human rights. As governments, donors and civil society gather virtually for the annual check-in on sustainable development progress at the UN High Level Political Forum, the global COVID-19 pandemic threatens catastrophic impacts on health systems and economies worldwide. Already before the virus started to spread, three billion people globally lacked soap and water at home, and almost half of healthcare facilities (43%) lacked basic hand hygiene facilities at points of care. COVID-19 is exacerbating existing inequalities and will likely increase disparities in access to basic services, particularly for people living in poverty or facing discrimination. Stopping the pandemic and minimizing its lethal impact will rely in part on delivering adequate support for the provision of vital water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services, particularly through handwashing with soap, prioritising the poorest and most marginalised. International recognition of – and recommitment to – the human rights to water and sanitation is an urgent global priority.
Urgent collective action to finance and implement extension of WASH services in households, schools, healthcare facilities, and public spaces will serve as a ‘transformative pathway’ for the 2030 Agenda, and for global efforts to respond to and recover from COVID-19. Just ten years remain to achieve universal access to water and sanitation (SDG6), and ensuring access to water and sanitation to all – as a public service and a right – is fundamental to ‘leave no one behind’ in realising this vision by 2030. In the moment of reset offered by COVID-19 for both public health and the global economy, the international human rights to water and sanitation can be a powerful source of inspiration gravely needed to spur action towards sustainable development.
Tentative programme |
Opening remarks
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Framing the 10-year anniversary of the human rights to water and sanitation
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The sanitation and hygiene crisis in times of COVID-19 – role and ambitions of the Sanitation and Hygiene Fund
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Panel and discussion (confirmed)
3-5 minutes introductory remarks per speaker, followed by discussion
Temple Oraeki, WASH Advocate
Sandra Carolina Ascencio, Human Rights Defender
TBC, Ministry of National Planning (lead ministry of Zambia’s VNR)
Fuad Bateh, Water Advisor and International Consultant
Justin Koffi, Regional Coordinator, UNFPA-World Bank Sahel Women Empowerment and Demographic Dividend (SWEDD) project |
A human rights framework for COVID-19 with WASH at the centre
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Closing remarks
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