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The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 5
- Paragraph text
- Target 7.C commits the international community to "halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and sanitation". The indicator used is the "proportion of population using an improved drinking water source or improved sanitation facility, urban and rural". The term "improved" was not specified any further, but in practice is taken to refer to water sources or delivery points that, by nature of their construction and design, are likely to protect the water from outside contamination; and sanitation facilities that hygienically separate human excreta from human contact. The WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation is the official United Nations mechanism tasked with monitoring progress towards the drinking water and sanitation target. The Joint Programme publishes estimates every two years on access to improved water sources and sanitation facilities worldwide, drawing data from household surveys and censuses.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 10
- Paragraph text
- The explanations for the insufficient progress towards the realization of the Millennium Development Goals are both context-specific and complex. Human rights do not provide all of the answers. However, there are a number of important ways in which the human rights framework may help fill critical analytical and implementation gaps in Millennium Development Goal-based strategies. The international human rights framework must be seen as the baseline commitment on global efforts to meet the Goals. While human rights embody legally binding obligations and need no instrumental justifications, there is increasing evidence that human rights-based approaches cannot only promote inclusive development processes, but also help to produce more equitable and sustainable development results. Enforceable socio-economic rights claims have been shown to have large-scale life-saving impacts.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 12
- Paragraph text
- The first question concerns the scale of ambition embodied in the Goals. The targets on access to water and sanitation are set at a 50 per cent reduction in the lack of access by the year 2015. But international human rights obligations do not stop at 50 per cent reduction or any other arbitrary benchmark. Whatever time period may prove realistic, international human rights law requires that States ultimately aim for universal coverage within time frames tailored to the country situation. Achieving the global Millennium Development Goal targets would undoubtedly represent a great success for many countries; but it is important to keep in mind that this would still leave 672 million people without access to water and 1.7 billion people without access to sanitation in 2015. In that regard, some countries present notable examples. For instance, Bangladesh, Kenya and South Africa have set targets for access to water and sanitation that are higher than the global Millennium Development Goal targets, and Sri Lanka is aiming for universal access to water by 2025.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 16
- Paragraph text
- It is challenging in many contexts to form definitive judgements about the extent to which States are meeting their obligations progressively to realize human rights. It is difficult to assess in quantitative terms whether a State is expending "the maximum of its available resources". However, there is an emerging body of research and practice in the field of quantitative assessments of human rights progress, going directly to the question of whether States are dedicating sufficient resources to the realization of their obligations. The human rights framework requires an examination of the fiscal and policy efforts undertaken for the realization of human rights, to assess whether these are sufficient under the given circumstances. Not only is an evidence-based assessment of this question important in its own right, but States which are able to demonstrate maximum effort may enjoy strengthened legal and moral claims for international assistance where national resources are lacking. Rights-based budget analysis has been explored quite extensively. There are many other approaches, including the use of cross-country comparisons of national budget expenditure on various rights to support advocacy as well as reporting processes under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (see www.cesr.org). There are also more elaborate and data-intensive approaches using econometric analysis, costing exercises and modelling of affordability constraints. Strengthened accountability can be pursued through composite indexes aiming to reveal comparative insights about the adequacy of Government efforts in fulfilling a limited bundle of socio-economic rights. Such instruments can help to assess whether States are directing the maximum of available resources towards the progressive realization of the rights to sanitation and water for all.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 22
- Paragraph text
- The normative content of the rights to water and sanitation can be determined in terms of the criteria of availability (referring to sufficient water for personal and domestic use, or sufficient sanitation facilities), quality (including safety), acceptability (including cultural acceptability), accessibility and affordability (see E/C.12/2002/11, para. 53, and A/HRC/12/24, paras. 69-80). The notion of progressive realization relates not only to progressively achieving universal access to water and sanitation, but also to meeting these standards. Human rights do not settle for minimum standards, such as basic access to water and sanitation, but ultimately require achieving a higher standard that guarantees an adequate standard of living.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 24
- Paragraph text
- In the first instance, human rights law requires that water and sanitation services be available. Water supply for each person must be sufficient for personal and domestic uses. In determining what is sufficient, human rights ultimately go beyond minimum targets such as 20 litres of water per person per day as referred to in the official guidance on the Millennium Development Goal indicators, which is considered insufficient to ensure health and hygiene. The Millennium Development Goal indicators do not explicitly refer to the availability of services, but use access to an improved water source as a proxy assuming that such sources are likely to provide a sufficient quantity of water. For sanitation, availability is implicitly addressed in the indicator framework since shared facilities are not considered improved. However, from a human rights perspective, facilities such as those shared with neighbours (i.e., only a small number of people), which are accessible, safe, hygienic and well kept, may be acceptable.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 28
- Paragraph text
- Fourthly, water and sanitation services must be accessible to everyone in the household or its vicinity on a continuous basis. Physical security must not be threatened when accessing facilities. Again, the Millennium Development Goals indicator on water is used as a proxy, on the assumption that "improved" sources are likely to be within the dwelling or a convenient distance from it. Accessibility could be measured more explicitly by using the time a round trip, including waiting time, takes. This could also serve as an indirect measurement of the amount of water people collect, as the distance to the water source has an impact on the quantity that can be collected. In fact, this is an indicator available from the surveys used by the Joint Monitoring Programme and has been reported on sporadically by the Joint Monitoring Programme as an additional criterion. The independent expert considers that this should be done systematically, including examination of accessibility in schools, workplaces and other spheres of life.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- Considerations of sanitation, accessibility and physical security when accessing facilities are addressed implicitly insofar as the Millennium Development Goal indicator excludes shared public toilets. Construction and maintenance are specifically contemplated, but apart from that, access is not further specified. Moreover, access must be ensured in a sustainable manner, which is provided for in the target but not necessarily captured by the indicators. People must not only "gain access" momentarily towards the target date, but beyond, which requires, inter alia, providing for the management and financing of facilities.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 31
- Paragraph text
- Fifthly and finally, services must be affordable. Access to water and sanitation must not compromise the ability to pay for other essential needs guaranteed by human rights such as food, housing and health care. While the Millennium Declaration specifically mentioned reducing by half the proportion of people unable to reach or afford safe water (General Assembly resolution 55/2, para. 19), the notion of affordability was omitted from Goal 7. This suggests that, politically, States saw the significance of affordability for ensuring actual access to services, but could not undertake to monitor it because of the lack of data. Developing such data sets is crucial to monitor affordability levels and progress in that regard. The affordability criterion needs to be revived and prioritized in national Millennium Development Goal monitoring activities and future global initiatives.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 44
- Paragraph text
- The lack of adequate participation has been a troubling feature of many national poverty reduction planning processes, whether based on the Millennium Development Goals or not. Participation has sometimes been reduced to the involvement of user groups in delivery of water and sanitation, or has been dominated by a few well-established non-governmental organizations. A reductionist, tokenistic and technocratic understanding of participation might lighten the State's load in the short run, but will rarely, if ever, be sufficient to genuinely empower people in connection with the decision-making processes that affect their lives.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 45
- Paragraph text
- A defining attribute of the human rights framework is its potential to empower people, to challenge existing inequities and to transform power relations to bring about real and sustainable changes, particularly for those most marginalized, with strengthened accountability. Human rights standards compel the participatory formulation of public policies and development plans and the institutionalization of democratic processes. All people have the right to participate in decision-making processes that may affect their rights, and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights affirms in its General Comment No. 15 that all people should be given full and equal access to information concerning water, sanitation and the environment (E/C.12/2002/11, paras. 12 (4), 48 and 55).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 47
- Paragraph text
- There are many well-known barriers to institutionalizing participatory practices, particularly insofar as the poorest and most excluded individuals and communities are concerned. Formal "democratic" guarantees and periodic free elections do not of themselves prevent the capture of governing institutions and decision-making processes by elite groups. Budgetary and programme delivery deadlines, electoral promises and disbursement incentives often crowd out meaningful participation requirements in practice. Analysis of the political, economic, cultural and social causes of exclusion is required as part of any serious effort to promote genuinely participatory processes, including a focus on literacy levels, language constraints, cultural barriers and physical obstacles.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 53
- Paragraph text
- The Millennium Development Goals help to promote accountability at national and global levels through monitoring and reporting against internationally agreed as well as nationally tailored targets. They draw upon widely available socio-economic statistics to monitor progress towards a realistic number of quantifiable targets. In this regard, they can provide a valuable complement to more traditional human rights monitoring tools and techniques, bringing human development data and quantitative assessment methods to human rights monitoring and hence helping to give a more complete picture of countries' progress - in absolute as well as comparative terms - towards the fulfilment of certain socio-economic rights.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 55
- Paragraph text
- Under international human rights law, States are obliged to put in place mechanisms for accessible, affordable, timely and effective remedies for any breaches of economic, social or cultural rights. These requirements convey a different idea about accountability than that embodied in the Millennium Development Goals framework. The consequences for the non-realization of the Goals and the incentives for better performance are determined largely in the court of public opinion on the basis of the content of periodic reporting processes. This is not to be discounted: in countries with democratic and responsive governing institutions and a free and pluralistic media, a relatively poor scorecard - particularly when contrasted with countries with comparable per capita GDP - may provide welcome stimulus for improved performance. However, human rights standards and monitoring bodies go further by assessing compliance with specific legal obligations for the realization of human rights as well as responsibilities for violations, including with respect to discrimination, exclusion and unjustifiable retrogression.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 57
- Paragraph text
- The enforcement of human rights claims can have preventive as well as reactive or corrective impacts and, through a range of feedback channels, exert enduring influence on legislative reform and policymaking. Recent empirical research in Brazil, India, Indonesia, Nigeria and South Africa has found that "legalizing demand for socio-economic rights might well have averted tens of thousands of deaths in the countries studied ... and has likely enriched the lives of millions of others". Litigation of course has its limitations and risks, and we are still learning about the preconditions for effective claims in any given context. Nevertheless, the role of human rights adjudication should be accorded a more explicit and prominent place in strategies to strengthen accountability.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human Rights Obligations Related to Non-State Service Provision in Water and Sanitation 2010, para. 20
- Paragraph text
- States must realize their human rights obligations in a non-discriminatory manner. They are obliged to eliminate both de jure and de facto discrimination on grounds of race, colour, sex, age, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth, physical or mental disability, health status, or any other civil, political, social or other status including the social and economic situation. They are obliged to pay priority attention to groups and individuals particularly vulnerable to exclusion and discrimination. Depending on the circumstances, they may need to adopt positive measures to redress existing discrimination.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human Rights Obligations Related to Non-State Service Provision in Water and Sanitation 2010, para. 26
- Paragraph text
- To be able to respect human rights, non-State actors need to know the actual and potential impact of their activities on the realization of human rights. According to the framework of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, such actors are required to exercise due diligence "to become aware of, prevent and address adverse human rights impacts". Due diligence is understood as "a comprehensive, proactive attempt to uncover human rights risks, actual and potential, over the entire life cycle of a […] business activity, with the aim of avoiding and mitigating those risks". That responsibility is not a mere passive one, but requires active steps to put into place the necessary policies, mechanisms to identify actual and potential harm to human rights, and grievance mechanisms.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human Rights Obligations Related to Non-State Service Provision in Water and Sanitation 2010, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- Compared to the formal private sector, many more people are served by informal small-scale providers. It has been estimated that up to 25 per cent of the urban population in Latin America and almost 50 per cent of the urban population in Africa rely on small-scale providers to some extent. Apart from unprotected sources, such as rivers, poor households rely on a variety of private water vendors such as water truck, standpipe and kiosk operators and small-scale water delivery services, which often - although not always - operate on an informal basis. When other sources are unsafe, people also often depend on bottled water in particular for drinking purposes. Even more so than in the water sector, small-scale local entrepreneurs are of enormous significance in the provision of sanitation services. Sanitation for low-income households is often provided on site and multiple actors are involved, with activities ranging from constructing, maintaining and emptying latrines and septic tanks to managing public facilities and selling related products such as cleaners and soap.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human Rights Obligations Related to Non-State Service Provision in Water and Sanitation 2010, para. 34
- Paragraph text
- The decision whether to delegate service provision must take place in the context of a sound overall strategy that lays out how the State aims to achieve universal access to sanitation and water. Both the strategy and the decision on delegation have to be adopted in a democratic, participatory and transparent process. In the view of the independent expert, the participation of all concerned must be active, free and meaningful. To enable genuine participation, this requires disclosure of adequate and sufficient information and actual access to information, referring in particular to the instruments that delegate service provision. In the case of State-owned companies, management will usually be delegated via legislation, decrees or contracts, while the authorities will often enter into contracts with private providers. The creation of a wider enabling environment for meaningful participation must be ensured, as well as specific opportunities for participation and reinforcement of the capacities of individuals and civil society to enable them to participate, monitor, evaluate and report on possible human rights abuses.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human Rights Obligations Related to Non-State Service Provision in Water and Sanitation 2010, para. 35
- Paragraph text
- Democratic decision-making implies that Governments must not be pushed into the decision to delegate service provision by donor conditionalities. Such conditionalities may limit independent decision-making in developing countries and thus undermine democracy and the capacity of local authorities to address and solve local problems. States must not limit their regulatory and policy space and must safeguard the ability to protect human rights (A/HRC/14/27, paras. 20-25). The decision for, or against, delegating service provision to non-State actors should always be taken in the light of the local circumstances. In that regard, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights considers that the "international financial institutions [...] should take into account the right to water in their lending policies, credit agreements, structural adjustment programmes and other development projects […], so that the enjoyment of the right to water is promoted", which, in the opinion of the independent expert, also applies to the right to sanitation.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human Rights Obligations Related to Non-State Service Provision in Water and Sanitation 2010, para. 47g
- Paragraph text
- [One of the key roles of regulation is to set and monitor performance standards. The regulatory framework has to set specific standards for providers to comply with in line with the human rights to water and sanitation and the obligation to progressively realize these rights in particular with regard to:] Affordability of services. Regulation also has to set standards regarding pricing. Water and sanitation services do not have to be provided for free and tariffs are necessary to ensure the sustainability of service provision. To meet human rights standards, the essential criterion is that tariffs and connection costs are designed in a way, including through social policies, that makes them affordable to all people, including those living in extreme poverty.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human Rights Obligations Related to Non-State Service Provision in Water and Sanitation 2010, para. 49
- Paragraph text
- While it is the obligation of the State to put into place the necessary regulations, providers also have responsibilities in the operation of services. As outlined above, they must exercise due diligence to become aware of, prevent and address adverse impacts on human rights. To meet this responsibility, service providers should take certain measures, such as ensuring that the water they provide is of safe quality, ensuring the regularity of supply, not discriminating in their operations, adopting fair procedures in cases of disconnections due to non-payment and refraining from disconnections when people are unable to pay and the disconnection would leave them without access to minimum essential levels of water.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human Rights Obligations Related to Non-State Service Provision in Water and Sanitation 2010, para. 51
- Paragraph text
- Effective regulation depends on the capacity to carry out regulatory functions. Regulation must be independent and shielded from political interference and capture by specific groups or politicians. A transparent and comprehensive regulatory framework helps to reduce the potential for abuse. Regulatory and institutional models may differ: some countries have independent regulatory agencies at the national level, while others largely regulate private sector participation by contract. There is no one-size-fits-all solution, but regulation has to be approached in a flexible manner and be adapted to local circumstances, needs and challenges such as the degree of decentralization. The essential point is that institutions must be in a position to carry out regulatory functions independently.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human Rights Obligations Related to Non-State Service Provision in Water and Sanitation 2010, para. 56
- Paragraph text
- The capacity to regulate effectively does not only depend on the institution itself, but is embedded in the broader context. Regulation will be undermined in a situation where corruption is rampant or when there is no functioning independent judiciary to enforce the regulatory framework and decisions taken by the regulator. Accountability and access to effective remedies are essential for closing the circle, as service providers and the State can be held accountable for deteriorating services, unmet performance standards, unjustified tariff increases, inadequate social policies or other breaches.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human Rights Obligations Related to Non-State Service Provision in Water and Sanitation 2010, para. 57
- Paragraph text
- To ensure accountability, roles and responsibilities have to be clearly designated and made transparent. Also, the coordination between different entities involved - public and private - has to be ensured. Water and sanitation users must be able to identify who is responsible in order to hold the relevant actor to account. Corruption presents an additional challenge to building responsive and accountable institutions. Fighting it requires, above all, strong political will. Transparency, in particular, will help to reduce the risk of corruption, for instance, by ensuring that bidding is competitive and contracts are made public. Where a State-owned company is formed to deliver water and sanitation services, the legislative process for the establishment of the company should be the product of a participatory and transparent process. In all cases, clearly defined performance targets and disclosure of information help to reduce the risk of corruption.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human Rights Obligations Related to Non-State Service Provision in Water and Sanitation 2010, para. 58
- Paragraph text
- Accountability can be achieved through judicial, quasi-judicial, administrative, political and social mechanisms at the national and international levels. Mechanisms can be based at the level of the service provider or of the State. As stated by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, irrespective of the obligation of the State to establish accountability mechanisms and ensure access to these, service providers have a responsibility to put into place means that allow individuals to bring alleged human rights abuses to their attention (A/HRC/8/5, para. 82). Such mechanisms should be easily accessible to consumers, but also to people within the area of operation who are not considered clients, for instance due to the non-payment of bills. This is part of exercising human rights due diligence, since accountability mechanisms enable the service provider to become aware of its (alleged) human rights impacts. Establishing grievance mechanisms can be seen as a necessary feedback loop complementing the general monitoring of human rights compliance. When abuses have been identified, non-State actors bear a responsibility to remedy those. Evidently, the set-up of these mechanisms will vary depending on the size of the business and other factors. For instance, while a large company might have an entire department dealing with complaints, small providers might be in touch directly with those who rely on their services. According to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, to be effective and credible, a non-judicial grievance mechanism should be legitimate, accessible, predictable, equitable, compatible with rights and transparent (para. 92).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human Rights Obligations Related to Non-State Service Provision in Water and Sanitation 2010, para. 60
- Paragraph text
- Therefore, it must be possible to address complaints to State institutions. Such mechanisms must be available to all people, not only for "clients" who pay for services provision. For instance, concerned individuals must have the opportunity to bring up potential discrimination in the targeting of subsidies. States have to provide "accessible, affordable, timely and effective" remedies. Victims of violations are entitled to adequate reparation, including restitution, compensation, satisfaction and/or guarantees of non-repetition. While administrative remedies will be adequate in many cases, a right of judicial appeal as a last resort is often appropriate and sometimes indispensable.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Financing for the Realization of the Rights to Water and Sanitation 2011, para. 9
- Paragraph text
- The most recent estimates reveal that nearly one billion people lack access to an improved source of drinking water, and 2.6 billion still do not have access to improved sanitation. The Millennium Development Goal target on sanitation is woefully off track and the number of people with no access is on the rise. Even if the 2015 target were met, over 1.7 billion people would still lack access to improved sanitation. The target for water is on track, but progress remains shaky. If achieved, at least 672 million people throughout the world will continue to lack access to improved water sources and the number of people without access to safe water would undoubtedly be much higher since current data do not include measurements of water quality or affordability. Invariably, it is the most marginalized and excluded populations which will continue to be without access; sadly, the progress made towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals has not resulted in significant changes for people living in poverty.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Financing for the Realization of the Rights to Water and Sanitation 2011, para. 13
- Paragraph text
- Although human rights law recognizes that States often have limited means, they are nonetheless required to work progressively to fully realize the rights to water and sanitation. The principle of progressive realization acknowledges that fully implementing economic, social and cultural rights is a long-term process, but affirms that States must progress over time, taking deliberate, concrete and targeted steps towards meeting the obligations recognized in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, in order to move as expeditiously and effectively as possible towards fulfilment of those rights. Running corollary to this principle is the prohibition of deliberately retrogressive measures. States which renege on their basic obligations and reduce protection for a particular right bear the burden of proof to show that such measures are justified by reference to the totality of the rights provided for in the Covenant and in the context of full use of the maximum available resources.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Financing for the Realization of the Rights to Water and Sanitation 2011, para. 14
- Paragraph text
- With a view to achieving progressively full realization of the rights to water and sanitation, each State is obliged to take steps to the maximum of its available resources and cannot justify neglect of its human rights obligations based on assertions that it lacks the necessary funds or human resources. Rather, there is a positive obligation for States to mobilize resources from those living within their borders and, where necessary, the international community. Regardless of the funding sources that a State chooses, it must always ensure that there are corresponding mechanisms in place to support transparency, public participation and accountability.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph