Rapid urbanization, population growth, and climate change are placing unprecedented pressure on municipal water security. Globally, around 3 billion people lack adequate housing, a crisis deeply intertwined with the absence of safe water and sanitation (WASH) infrastructure. Residents of informal settlements are on the frontlines of this emergency. Frequently excluded from municipal grids, they face severe systemic barriers: retrofit infrastructure is technically challenging to install in densely built environments, land tenure rights and state responsibilities remain unclear, and critical data regarding the location, size, and service coverage of these settlements is scarce.
As a result, residents must rely on informal water vendors – often paying a multiple of regular municipal tariffs for basic access. Furthermore, sanitation relies heavily on basic on-site latrines or pit toilets. Depicting a grave environmental and public health hazard.
Recent in-depth reviews of SDG 6 and SDG 11 deliver a stark warning: progress is too slow and deeply unequal. Achieving universal access to safely managed drinking water and sanitation by 2030 requires an immediate acceleration of climate-resilient solutions, especially in rapidly expanding peri-urban areas.
Yet, a strategic window of opportunity is opening. Propelled by momentum from the UN Water Action Decade, water has risen to the top of the global political agenda as a catalyst for sustainable development.
This event discusses concrete solutions and integrated, community-driven models that deliver safe, equitable, and resilient WASH services in practice.
Event link: https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/375879655824213?p=b9XdZ6rsoIqFM1JKOe