| International Year of Sanitation 2008 Global Launch 21 November 2007 |
21 November 2007: |
World Water Week 12-18 August 2007 |
His Royal Highness the Prince of Orange, Chair of United Nations Secretary General's Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation opens UN-Water Seminar at World Water Week in Stockholm, 15 Aug 2007 Link>> |
| Preparatory Meeting 7 May 2007 |
7 May 2007: UN Radio News Update-Access to sanitation a fundamental issue of human dignity and human rights: mp3 |
IYS in Action
World Water Day 2008
World Water Day 2008 with the theme “Sanitation matters!” was celebrated by the United Nations on 20 March 2008. The official celebrations in Geneva featured high-level dignitaries including His Royal Highness Prince Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands. To draw attention to the current sanitation crisis, in which nearly 40% of the world population, don't have access to a basic toilet, a toilet queue at the premises of the UN in Geneva was organized. World Water Day 2008 was also celebrated by the UN in New York. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon stressed the need for action on the occassion of the day: “Let us go beyond raising awareness - let us press for action to make a measurable difference in people’s lives.”
Other events celebrating World Water Day 2008 >>
World Water Day 2008 Official Website >>
WSSCC Global Sanitation Fund
The Water Supply & Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) is launching the Global Sanitation Fund. The Global Sanitation Fund is a newly created programme part of WSSCC. Its main goal is to boost sanitation expenditures for people-centred, community-managed and demand-driven work programmes, thus contributing to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goal sanitation target by 2015. The Global Sanitation Fund is the first global mechanism for financing sanitation and its launch is one of the major initiatives of the International Year of Sanitation 2008. More information >>
Training on wastewater management for decision-makers from 15 Arab countries
As one of UNEP's contributions to the International Year of Sanitation, the UNEP/GPA Coordination Office, jointly with the Arab Water Council (AWC), the Egyptian Ministry for Water Resources and Irrigation, and Delft-Environment, coordinated the delivery of a regional training course on wastewater management for decision-makers from Arab Countries, held in the first week of January 2008 in Cairo, based on the UNEP-UNESCO-UNDOALOS Train-Sea-Coast wastewater management training. More details are available in the report, which is available for download. Link >>
21 November 2007- International Year of Sanitation 2008 Global Launch, New York, NY
The United Nations officially launched the International Year of Sanitation to accelerate progress for 2.6 billion people world wide who are without proper sanitation facilities. The International Year of Sanitation logo was unveiled and the IYS public service announcement as well as the message of Gareth Thomas of the Department for International Development UK viewed. The launch of IYS, which runs through 2008, was organized by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) in collaboration with the UN-Water Task Force on Sanitation. The event was attended by UN Member States, NGOs, citizen groups, academics and the private sector as well as members of the Secretary-General’s Advisory Board [programme]
IYS Activities at World Water Week, 12-18 August 2007, Stockholm, Sweden
Preparing a Final Action Plan for the International Year of Sanitation (IYS) 2008, August 15, Seminar convened by UN-Water and UNSGAB [programme] [opening remarks] by H.R.H. the Prince of Orange, Chair of UNSGAB
Practical Approaches to Pro-Poor Water and Sanitation Governance, August 14, Seminar convened by UN-HABITAT and UNDP Water Governance Facility [programme], [opening remarks] by H.R.H. the Prince of Orange, Chair of UNSGAB
Integrated Slum Upgrading: Meeting the Water and Sanitation Needs of the Poorest of the Poor, August 14, Seminar convened by UN-Habitat and Asian Development Bank [programme] [UN-Habitat summary]
Sanitation 21 - Let's Do Planning and Design Better, August 15, Seminar convened by International Water Association (IWA), Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) and Swedish Water House (SWH) [programme]
Killing Fields of Sanitation - Politcial Neglect, August 16, Seminar convened by Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI), Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI), the French Coordination for Water and the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) [programme] [WSSCC summary report]
7 May 2007 - Preparatory Meeting of International Year of Sanitation, Unicef House, New York Co-hosted by UNSGAB, UN-DESA and UNICEF and chaired by HRH Prince of Orange, Chair of UNSGAB [UNSGAB report], [Unicef report with video] [remarks] by H.R.H. the Prince of Orange, [remarks] by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon