On World Water Day 2005, WaterAid called on the UK and other governments to improve their performance in order to meet their water and sanitation promises. On the same day, UK International Development Secretary Hilary Benn announced he would double UK aid for water and sanitation in Africa's poorest countries over the next three years, up from GBP 47.5 million (EUR 69.1 million) in 2005 to GBP 95 million (EUR 138 million in 2007/08 (this is still only 1.5 per cent of UK development aid).

For its report [1], WaterAid reviewed the water and sanitation sector in the 14 countries where it works. Twelve out of the 14 examined - need to invest more money if they are to have any chance of reaching their Millennium Development Goals (MDG) targets for water and sanitation. WaterAid identified the following essential actions and recommendations:

• prioritisation – putting water and sanitation at the heart of poverty reduction
• transparency – be open about what's going on
• equity – some for all not all for some
• coordination – don't duplicate
• capacity – give local government the money as well as the responsibility
• sustainability – the difference between success and failure
• privatisation - a pointless condition
• spending, aid and debt - willing the means as well as the ends

[1] Redhouse, D. … [et al.] Getting to boiling point : turning up the heat on water and sanitation. London, UK, WaterAid. Executive summary and full report

Contact: mailto:wateraid@wateraid.org

Tags: policies & legislation