On April 11, the Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) partnership will hold its High Level Meeting 2014 in Washington, D.C. SWA is a global partnership of over 90 developing country governments, donors, civil society organizations and other development partners working together to catalyse political leadership and action, improve accountability and use scarce resources more effectively. Partners work towards a common vision of universal access to safe water and adequate sanitation.
Interested individuals can participate in the meeting virtually, in two ways. First, you can watch the live webcast from 2:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time (18:00 – 20:30 GMT) on April 11 at this link http://live.worldbank.org/sanitation-water-for-all-high-level-meeting. Secondly, you can submit questions to panelists via a form found at the same link.
To find out more about the meeting, including the latest on commitments in water and sanitation from some 50 countries, visit http://sanitationandwaterforall.org.
Below are some additional details about the meeting.
WHO: Ban Ki-moon, United Nations Secretary-General
Dr. Jim Yong Kim, President of the World Bank Group
H.E. John Agyekum Kufuor, Chairman, Sanitation and Water for All Partnership
Anthony Lake, Executive Director of UNICEF
Prof. Judi Wakhungu, Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Water and Natural Resources, Republic of Kenya
Dr. Shanta Devarajan, Chief Economist, World Bank
Hon. Sufian Ahmed, Minister of Finance, Ethiopia
Jan Eliasson, United Nations Deputy Secretary-General
Ministers of finance, development, water, health and sanitation from 50 countries
International and national NGOs and development organizations
WHAT: Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) High Level Meeting (HLM) in conjunction with the 2014 Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group
WHEN: Friday,April 11, 2014 , 1400 – 1630 EST (DC time)
WHERE: World Bank Group, IFC Auditorium, 2121 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W., Washington, DC
WHY: 1 in 3 people (2.5 billion) around the world still do not have access to safe sanitation, including 1 billion who must defecate in the open. Almost 600,000 children under five died from diarrhoeal diseases, or about 1,600 per day, in 2012. Three-quarters of a billion people do not have a source of improved drinking water and billions more use unsafe water. These, along with poor sanitation and hygiene, contribute to malnutrition and stunting in 165 million children globally. Top economists agree that the return on investments in water and sanitation is 5 to 1. Two years ago, 48 countries made 415 commitments toward expanding access to safe water and sanitation. This year, countries will assess their progress and make new efforts to continue that momentum.
