On March 18th, the United Nations, UN General Assembly held a High-Level Meeting to discuss about the water-related SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals).
“The world must immediately prioritize efforts to protect water and ensure that everyone has access to clean water and safe sanitation.” This was the main message from the UN High-Level Meeting on Water, happened on March 18, in which SIWI, the Stockholm International Water Institute, participated as well.
The milestone event, organized by the UN General Assembly, took place soon after a report showed that the world is not on track to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 6 about clean water and sanitation. “It is a moral failure that we live in world with such a high level of technical success but where we still allow so many to live without access to clean drinking water or ability to wash their hands,” said the President of the UN General Assembly, H.E. Volkan Bozkir, as he opened the UN High-Level Meeting on Water on 18 March.
In addition to this moral obligation, the world also has much to gain from focusing on improved water management and increased access to water and sanitation. This was emphasized by SIWI’s Executive Director Torgny Holmgren in his address to the High-Level Meeting. “Water-centred solutions will limit the impact of climate change, improve food security, and make ecosystems more resilient. Now is the time to scale them up and accelerate action,” Holmgren said.
For more info about the meeting please click here.
