United Nations recognised water as a basic human right. This resolution was crucial to the world’s political leaders through the Millennium Development Goals to halve, by 2015, the proportion of people unable to reach or afford safe drinking water, and to halve the proportion of people without access to basic sanitation.

The resolution should give now a stronger push to policy makers to address all the factors that have led to the current world water crisis.

Please find attached the draft resolution.

To know more about the process please read the news section from United Nations at: http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2010/ga10967.doc.htm

For the first time since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted 60 years ago, the UN General Assembly is finally poised to recognize the Human Right to Water and Sanitation.

You can support the UN Resolution on the Human Right to Water and Sanitation by clicking here: http://www.blueplanetproject.net/RightToWater/action-UN.html

You can also join Blue Planet Project for an international day of action for the human right to water and sanitation on July 22, 2010… your action at home will send a message to the world’s capitals that action is needed now!

Please check the website: http://www.blueplanetproject.net/

This opinion piece is adapted from a response published in The Guardian on 6 May 2010.

About Jon Lane

Jon Lane, OBE, is a Civil Engineer by profession. He is the Executive Director of the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC). Mr. Lane was previously Director of RedR (Registered Engineers for Disaster Relief) and of WaterAid. Before joining the WSSCC in 2007, he worked as a senior-level consultant in water and sanitation. His special passion is to give sanitation and hygiene much greater global prominence and recognition.

By humanitarian news and analysis, 21 June 2010

Maiduguri — Lack of access to clean toilets or an adequate water supply, living in close proximity to animals, and poor public health awareness have helped put 2.3 million people in northern Nigeria's Borno State at risk of contracting trachoma, a bacterial infection causing blindness.

But practising simple good hygiene and stopping open defecation can significantly reduce the chances of contracting the disease, says NGO Helen Keller International (HKI).

Full article

By Brigitte Weidlich, 14 June 2010

NAMIBIA - A GROUP of experts has presented findings on possible future subsidisation of water tariffs for poor households, a plan that was mulled some three years ago.

full article

Influential decision makers in the Arab World’s water sector, with partners from the global community, will come together in a high level forum to develop 21st century innovations and solutions to water challenges in the Middle East and North Africa.
The driest in the world, the Arab region has well identified, well studied and well researched its water challenges. Water security is declining as countries are unsustainably and inefficiently using more water than what is available. There are growing new complex connections between water, energy, climate change and food security. Fast growing populations, increasing affluence, economic growth and diversification place new demands on water.

It is time to develop and deliver the solutions ‐ to secure the water future.

On the Saniblog.org The Peepoo bag system – top or flop?

Written by jke on April 30, 2010 – 4:37 pm

This blog post presents advantages and disadavantages of such a technic for urban poor population.

Most of the points where taken from the EcoSanRes Yahoo! group where the subject has been discussed for quite some time now. There also is an interesting short report with results of a medium-scale trial of these bags in Bangladesh (PDF; 1.7 MB) which was published in GTZ ecosan newsletter no. 34 in September 2009.

The theme for 2010 is “Responding to global challenges: The water quality challenge – prevention, wise use and abatement”.  Different aspects of water quality will be taken up during the week, including how to prevent, wisely use and abate water pollution.

Take a look at the website

EARLY REGISTRATION discount before the 30th June 2010

Detailed information about seminars, sessions, side events is available in the 2nd Announcement. Here you can also find practical information to help attendees and convenors make the most of their participation.

2nd Announcement 2010

The June 2010 issue of the SDI-Africa newsletter (Vol. 9, No. 6) is available online at http://portal.gsdi.org/files/?artifact_id=715

Spatial Data Infrastructure — Africa (SDI-Africa), published by the Global Spatial Data Infrastructure (GSDI) Association, is a free, electronic newsletter for people interested in GIS, remote sensing, and data management issues in Africa. The newsletter has been published monthly since May 2002 and has wide circulation across Africa. Each issue highlights recent activities, provides details about available data and tools, and includes notices about upcoming training, employment and funding opportunities, and events. The aim is to strengthen national SDI initiatives and support synchronization of regional geospatial activities.