Hi everyone, 

From the Working Group 6 on Cities, we want to start a discussion on COVID and Urban WASH. While a lot of excellent resources have been put together in the previous Forum post here , there is still a lot of ideas and expertise that has not been documented yet. Below is to kick-start the discussion that looks beyond the crisis and moves towards using this to address provision of inclusive Urban WASH services in the long term. This could then inform a potential working paper, or a webinar session as well. 

During this crisis of COVID-19 most developed nations struggled to keep their essential services in place. The basic WASH services in several developing countries, especially in high density urban contexts have been disrupted or marginally functional in crisis mode. While, governments, NGOs and international aid agencies have rushed support several initiatives that bolster the efforts made to provide basic WASH services, however, these measures will not be able to provide much more than immediate relief. The COVID19 pandemic has exposed the vulnerability and inequities arising due to the lack of access to WASH services, which then have direct effects on public health and economy. This pandemic has however, given an opportunity to emphasise the need for WASH, and make use of the window to provide more long-term provision of infrastructure and services to the urban poor.

Discussion Points
1.     How could this COVID19 crisis be turned into an opportunity for providing safe WASH services to the urban poor?
2.    Are there clear inequalities arisen from this crisis and how could they be addressed ? 



On behalf of WG-6 Leads, 

Abishek S Narayan
Co-lead for SuSanA WG-6: Cities
Doctoral Researcher, Eawag-Sandec
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