Water agenda

Access to safe water and sanitation is a basic human right. Achieving universal, adequate and equitable access to safely managed water and sanitation services is at the heart of sustainable development. This is reflected in MDG 6 "Ensure access to water and sanitation for all". The importance of good hygiene through handwashing and access to safe drinking water was highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite progress over the past decades, billions of people around the world still lack access to safe drinking water and sanitation, and there are only 9 years left to achieve MDG 6.

As part of the activities of the WASH thematic priority of the UfM Water Agenda, supported by the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM Secretariat) and the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, the Regional Program on Energy Security and Climate Change in the Middle East and North Africa (KAS - REMENA). The WASH Working Group recognized the need to set the stage and do some initial preparatory work to review the status and current efforts on WASH issues in the Mediterranean countries. This stocktaking is presented in this report which identifies strengths and weaknesses and highlights priority areas for information and knowledge sharing on WASH in the Mediterranean region. The SoA report builds on existing data and collected additional data through a questionnaire distributed to UfM member countries and WASH stakeholders in the region.