'Sanitation work: Light at the end of the tunnel ' is interesting as it focuses on sanitation workers as one of the major factors in achieving SDG6. Even there are very clear connections with other SDGs, including the one looking at decent work conditions. The importance of sanitation workers in the global south is crucial and needs utmost importance as they operate with fewer resources. 

A query is whether the  other types of waste management like plastic waste collection and segregation, as well as food waste management, should also be added to the "sanitation work" given the hazardous nature.?

Regards
Hariprasad

Dear SuSanA friends,

As a follow up to the earlier post, please find below some summary information from the UN 2023 Water Conference. Please note many sessions are still online and can be viewed on UN WEB TV as linked below.

Regards,

Dave

The  UN 2023 Water Conference  in New York culminated 24 March with a strong response to the global water, sanitation and hygiene crisis, with governments, businesses and civil society committing billions of dollars to advance the water agenda, according to the conference organizer Read the conference final statement

• Through its  activities  at the conference, WHO highlighted the critical role of safely managed water supply, sanitation, and hygiene in people's health. WHO and UNICEF collaborated on developing the ' Water for health ' interactive dialogue paper, and also WHO led or contributed to a number of dialogues and side events, many of which are highlighted below. 
• On 24 March, the ' Water for health interactive dialogue ', co-chaired by the Dominican Republic and the United Kingdom, emphasized the importance of investing in access to water, sanitation, and hygiene services for achieving health, development, and social and economic progress. Panelists and discussants shared their experiences and showcased commitments to achieving universal access to WASH services.
• On the same day, ' WASH as a driver of health ' was organized by WHO and partners. The side event highlighted the need for WASH and health sectors to work together to achieve shared aims, given that inadequate WASH caused 1.4 million deaths and 74 million disability adjusted life years in 2019. Recommendations for action from the side event included strengthening partnerships between WASH and health, prioritizing WASH in healthcare facilities, integrating WASH into national antimicrobial resistance (AMR) plans, building political will, and increasing public spending on WASH.
• WHO's Regional Office for Europe  highlighted growing momentum  around the  Protocol on Water and Health , presenting the practical tools developed under the Protocol available to governments, local authorities and communities to support progress towards reaching SDG 6 and building safe and climate-resilient WASH services fit for the future.

In 2020 almost half of the world’s population, 3.6 billion people, used sanitation services that left human waste untreated, threatening human and environmental health. An estimated 494 million people practiced open defecation, with rural dwellers, Indigenous Peoples and poor people much more likely to be without any sanitation services at all. So, improving access to sanitation was a major focus of the UN 2023 Water Conference. A sampling:


• Ms. Eva Muhia, Deputy President, Pan-African Association of Sanitation Actors (PASA)  brought the voice of sanitation workers to the lead-off  interactive dialogue 1 on water and health . Worker rights and dignity were also addressed in the virtual side event entitled ' SDG 6.2 – A Pipe Dream Without a Professional Sanitation Workforce '. 
• The need for safe sanitation and hygiene is increasingly pressing as the world grapples with dual climate change and public health crises. WHO participated in two related side events, ' Accelerating progress on safe sanitation and hygiene for all: Countdown to 2030 ' (part of a series of  UNICEF events ) and ' Pollution, Sanitation, Water Quality and Climate Resilience: A Call to Action '. The former emphasized the importance of partnership and political commitment in achieving safely managed sanitation and hygiene for all, while the latter aimed to promote a holistic and integrated approach to pollution control and sanitation that is resilient to climate hazards and low-carbon. 
• On the sidelines of the conference and as a continuation of the  Devex WASH Works series , WHO's Bruce Gordon, Head of the Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Health Unit, together with Kate Medlicott, Team Lead, Sanitation and Wastewater, discussed sanitation challenges, from regulation to climate resilience. 
• Finally, and most visually, a special exhibition provided real-life perspectives on the conditions that sanitation workers face.  The exhibition can be seen in virtual form on WaterAid's website here . The exhibit was visited by Maria Neira, Assistant Director General, WHO; Gilbert Houngbo, Director General of the International Labour Organization and Chair of UN-Water; and Eva Muhia and Ibra Sow of PASA. 

Dear SuSanA friends,

In followup to the above post, please find below some summary coverage from the UN 2023 Water Conference. Please note many sessions are linked and can be watched on UN WEB TV.

UN 2023 Water Conference wrap-up The  UN 2023 Water Conference  in New York culminated 24 March with a strong response to the global water, sanitation and hygiene crisis, with governments, businesses and civil society committing billions of dollars to advance the water agenda, according to the conference organizers.Some 10,000 participants gathered at UN Headquarters and online from 22 to 24 March 2023, to urgently scale up action to address the water crisis and ensure equitable access to water for all. “The commitments at this Conference will propel humanity towards the water-secure future every person on the planet needs,” noted UN Secretary-General António Guterres at the closing ceremony.WHO's delegation was led by Dr. Maria Neira, Assistant Director General, with support from the Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Health Unit, the WHO New York Office, and the WHO Regional Office for Europe.Through its  activities  at the conference, WHO highlighted the critical role of safely managed water supply, sanitation, and hygiene in people's health. WHO and UNICEF collaborated on developing the ' Water for health ' interactive dialogue paper, and also WHO led or contributed to a number of dialogues and side events, many of which are highlighted below.  Read the conference final statement WASH and health take center stage During the WHO side event, Hon. Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Minister of Drinking Water and Sanitation Department (Jal Shakti), Government of India, shares experiences with India’s flagship programmes on sanitation and more recently on drinking-water with the Jal Jeevan Mission.The start of the UN 2023 Water Conference included the interactive dialogue on water for health, and a WHO-led side event which focused on actions aimed to align the WASH and health sectors through, for example, a shared focus on improving conditions in health care facilities. On 24 March, the ' Water for health interactive dialogue ', co-chaired by the Dominican Republic and the United Kingdom, emphasized the importance of investing in access to water, sanitation, and hygiene services for achieving health, development, and social and economic progress. Panelists and discussants shared their experiences and showcased commitments to achieving universal access to WASH services.On the same day, ' WASH as a driver of health ' was organized by WHO and partners. The side event highlighted the need for WASH and health sectors to work together to achieve shared aims, given that inadequate WASH caused 1.4 million deaths and 74 million disability adjusted life years in 2019. Recommendations for action from the side event included strengthening partnerships between WASH and health, prioritizing WASH in healthcare facilities, integrating WASH into national antimicrobial resistance (AMR) plans, building political will, and increasing public spending on WASH.WHO's Regional Office for Europe  highlighted growing momentum  around the  Protocol on Water and Health , presenting the practical tools developed under the Protocol available to governments, local authorities and communities to support progress towards reaching SDG 6 and building safe and climate-resilient WASH services fit for the future.WHO also contributed to the side event 'A Global Commitment to Stop the Flow of Lead in Drinking Water,' informing about the  related technical guidance  it published in English and French in 2022.  Watch recording of the water for health interactive dialogue Watch recording of WASH and health side event Watch recording of the lead in drinking water side event Championing sanitation workers: Gilbert Houngbo, Director General of the International Labour Organization and Chair of UN-Water, and Maria Neira, Assistant Director General, WHO. Eva Muhia, Deputy President of the Pan-African Association of Sanitation Actors (PASA)  during the interactive dialogue on water and health.Sanitation hopes for a boost from conferenceIn 2020 almost half of the world’s population, 3.6 billion people, used sanitation services that left human waste untreated, threatening human and environmental health. An estimated 494 million people practiced open defecation, with rural dwellers, Indigenous Peoples and poor people much more likely to be without any sanitation services at all. So, improving access to sanitation was a major focus of the UN 2023 Water Conference. A sampling: Ms. Eva Muhia, Deputy President, Pan-African Association of Sanitation Actors (PASA)  brought the voice of sanitation workers to the lead-off  interactive dialogue 1 on water and health . Worker rights and dignity were also addressed in the virtual side event entitled ' SDG 6.2 – A Pipe Dream Without a Professional Sanitation Workforce '.  The need for safe sanitation and hygiene is increasingly pressing as the world grapples with dual climate change and public health crises. WHO participated in two related side events, ' Accelerating progress on safe sanitation and hygiene for all: Countdown to 2030 ' (part of a series of  UNICEF events ) and ' Pollution, Sanitation, Water Quality and Climate Resilience: A Call to Action '. The former emphasized the importance of partnership and political commitment in achieving safely managed sanitation and hygiene for all, while the latter aimed to promote a holistic and integrated approach to pollution control and sanitation that is resilient to climate hazards and low-carbon.  On the sidelines of the conference and as a continuation of the  Devex WASH Works series , WHO's Bruce Gordon, Head of the Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Health Unit, together with Kate Medlicott, Team Lead, Sanitation and Wastewater, discussed sanitation challenges, from regulation to climate resilience.  Finally, and most visually, a special exhibition provided real-life perspectives on the conditions that sanitation workers face.  The exhibition can be seen in virtual form on WaterAid's website here . The exhibit was visited by Maria Neira, Assistant Director General, WHO; Gilbert Houngbo, Director General of the International Labour Organization and Chair of UN-Water; and Eva Muhia and Ibra Sow of PASA.  Watch SDG 6.2 – A Pipe Dream Without a Professional Sanitation Workforce Watch Accelerating progress on safe sanitation and hygiene for all: Countdown to 2030 Kate Medlicott  discusses sanitation acceleration Bruce Gordon discusses  climate resilient water and sanitation  WHO and UNICEF urge immediate action for safe WASH access; WHO commits to WASH professionalization, menstrual health In a  joint statement , WHO and UNICEF called on all nations to take immediate and radical action to provide safe WASH to all people, and WHO contributed to the Water Action Agenda, an initiative to mobilize local, regional and global commitments from all stakeholders.In the statement, WHO and UNICEF urged governments to commit to WASH by increasing political commitment, developing costed funding and financing strategies, investing in building a strong and diverse workforce with skills in the WASH sector, institutionalizing data collection and monitoring, and encouraging WASH innovation and experimentation. The statement noted investments and decisive action in WASH can be transformative.Through the Water Action Agenda, WHO committed to 'accelerating professionalized water supply and sanitation services through capacity building in regulation for dramatic improvements in water, sanitation, and hygiene in health care facilities.' WHO also committed to strengthening action on menstrual health in adolescent girls.  Read the WHO/UNICEF Joint Statement Read the commitment on accelerating professionalized water supply and sanitation services Read the commitment on menstrual health for adolescent girls Read all about it WHO's Kate Medlicott together with UN-Water colleagues discusses sanitation and other Water Action Agenda opportunities in the context of a World Water Day discussion at the  SDG Media Zone .  The conference attracted the attention of media from around the world, focusing not only on the conference but also the World Water Day 2023. Below please find links to a selection of articles. UN Water Conference ends with nonbinding agreements -  Devex Two billion people use a drinking water source contaminated with faeces, says WHO -  Down to Earth World Rallies Around United Nations Call to Protect Water -  Health Policy Watch Governments must speed up action to enable access to clean water for all, say UN bodies -  The BMJ WHO: Ensure Access To Clean Water For All -  Kenya News Agency La OMS y UNICEF piden garantizar el acceso al agua potable y saneamiento a todo el mundo -  Infosalus Cholera emergency is avoidable, global task force explains -  Forbes

Dear friends,

The WHO team (Kate, Rick, Bruce, Sophie and Betsy) look forward to seeing many of you in New York for the UN 2023 Water Conference.

Please feel to join our hosted events live or virtually: WASH as a driver of improved health, Wednesday, 22 March, 11:00 - 12:15 EDT, Side Event Room 7 & live on UN Web TV  https://media.un.org/en/webtv/schedule/2023-03-22 ·    

New momentum to make safe water and sanitation a reality for all: How to scale up globally practical tools and know-how gained under the Protocol on Water and Health?, Wednesday, 22 March, 14:00 - 15:15 EDT, Side Event Room 9

We are also pleased to engage in a number of other events, especially the Exhibition on 'Sanitation work: Light at the end of the tunnel 'You can read about our full range of activities here:  https://www.who.int/news-room/events/detail/2023/03/22/default-calendar/who-at-the-un-water-conference-2023