Sustainable Sanitation – the drive to 2015

WECF has contributed to developing the key messages, and is excited that sustainable has been added as the logical prefix to sanitation

21.06.2011 |Chantal van den Bossche

In December 2010 the UN General Assembly passed a resolution calling on member states to "redouble efforts to close the sanitation gap". The resolution established "Sustainable Sanitation: The Five-Year-Drive to 2015", to focus attention on the Goal and to mobilize political will, as well as financial and technical resources. The resolution also made history by calling for an end to open defecation and build on the success of the International Year of Sanitation.

The right to safe and affordable but especially sustainable water and sanitation is one of the main missions of WECF, Women in Europe for a Common Future. WECF water coordinator Margriet Samwel is thrilled to hear the news: “Thats a really great achievement!! Sanitation is not any more just collecting the excreta but is now connected with water protection and food production! The fact sheets are also very nice! Managing nutrients efficiently makes sense when we think about food and energy security, water quality and availability, biodiversity, fisheries and climate change”

On Tuesday June 21st the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, along with UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake, Ugandan Minister of Water & Environment the Hon. Maria Mutagamba, and His Royal Highness the Prince of Orange, launched this initiative at UN Headquarters here in New York. This initiative is being supported by UNICEF and other member of UN-Water who have worked together to develop materials for the drive.

The overall strategy will be called: Sustainable Sanitation: the Drive to 2015

There are five agreed messages fact sheets which have been prepared for each of these messages:

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