New host for WSSCC secretariat

An agreement has been reached to transfer the hosting of the WSSCC Secretariat from the World Health Organization (WHO) to the service provider arm of the United Nations, UNOPS. The transfer of host operations will occur in stages and be completed by 31 December 2009. UNOPS, which is based in Copenhagen, has a brief to expand the capacity of the UN to implement its peace-building, humanitarian and development operations, and it undertakes project management, procurement and other support services to United Nations agencies and other international organizations. Jon Lane, WSSCC Executive Director, said, “We are pleased to have found a new partner in UNOPS to act as host for WSSCC’s Secretariat, and we envisage a smooth transition with our member-related and program work continuing as usual.”
WSSCC will remain in Geneva, where UNOPS also has offices, and will continue to be governed by a multi-stakeholder Steering Committee elected by its members.'

The new worldwide web of WSSCC

Screen shot of WSSCC's new website (placeholder until 10 August)
WSSCC's website has undergone a massive transformation at www.wsscc.org. The new improved site offers better opportunities for WSSCC members, professionals and interested individuals to learn, network and advocate on behalf of sanitation, hygiene and water supply. Among the highlights: direct entry into WSSCC's topic areas; a platform for WASH campaigning; enhanced country content; member-contributed success stories; a powerful, contextual search engine for the latest and greatest in sanitation, hygiene and water supply knowledge; and an experts database. Make it a point to visit the new www.wsscc.org today!

WSSCC endorses sanitation as a human right

WSSCC has endorsed the right to sanitation as a human right crucial to health and dignity. In June 2009, WSSCC submitted to Ms. Catarina de Albuquerque, the United Nations Independent Expert, its official position on the Human Right to Water and Sanitation. The statement said: “WSSCC would be delighted to see the people’s access to sanitation endorsed through the process and through the creation of a formal human right. Indeed, the formal recognition would ascribe sanitation the attention it since long deserves in the context of improving health, dignity and welfare of all.” Other background information and the full position are available at www.wsscc.org.

Kamal Kar thinks globally with WSSCC about CLTS

The pioneer of the community-led total sanitation movement, Dr. Kamal Kar took time out while in Geneva to participate in the WSSCC Annual Planning Meeting of National Coordinators to be interviewed about the latest trends in CLTS. The wide-ranging interview offered Dr. Kar's unique insights on the genesis, current status and future direction of CLTS around the world since he launched the idea in a Bangladesh village in 1999. He told Think Globally Radio that the key elements were that it applied home grown analysis and solutions rather than responding to external subsidies and prescriptions, on the basis that people wanted to improve their lives and avoid filth and dirt. “It is basically an empowerment tool,” he told interviewer Dave Trouba, and one that has now spread to 32 countries.

To hear the interview in its entirety, visit Think Globally Radio site and click on programme entitled “Ending Open Defecation –One Community at a Time”.

To read the interview, visit our site.

Tags: advocacy, on-site sanitation, policies & legislation, sanitation