Sanitation and wastewater management

A lack of adequate sanitation and systems for managing excreta remains a massive threat to the health of populations and the environment in low and middle income countries.

The sector has evolved dramatically in the past ten years and many organizations – both governmental, non-governmental and private – are involved in promoting improved sanitation. But, the scale of the problem is still huge and progress towards the achievement of the MDGs is in many countries unimpressive.

Purpose of the programme

IWA aims to provide strategic leadership and support to its partners in the development of sustainable solutions to overcome these problems. We aim to provide our members with state-of-the art resource materials and tools for planning, implementation and managing sanitation systems.

We place a particular emphasis on promoting a wider range of technologies and management solutions than is often typically considered and we advocate the need for multi-disciplinary partnerships to help solve the world’s problems related to excreta and wastewater disposal.

In response to this situation, IWA is taking an increasingly prominent role in the following activities:

• Synthesis and dissemination of technical resource materials and planning tools.
• Promotion of technologies that reduce the impact on the environment and preserve natural resources via the recycling of domestic wastewater and
  nutrients in human excreta.
• Workshops and training initiatives to help organizational and human resource development.
• Development of financial and economic assessment tools for sanitation practitioners.
• Institutional reforms and the development of appropriate management and regulatory arrangements.
• Facilitation of dialogue with professionals in other sectors – notably health, urban planning, political and social sciences. Linkages with other IWA programmatic activity

Linkages to IWA programmatic activities

IWA Development Solutions aims to support the initiatives of IWA specialist groups and other partners with specific interests in sanitation and wastewater management. These groups include ‘Sanitation and Water Management in Developing Countries’, ‘Resources Oriented Sanitation (EcoSan), ‘Small Water and Wastewater Systems’, and ‘Waste Stabilisation Ponds’. In addition, the team is working closely with the Operation and Maintenance Network,and other relevant programmes such as Water Operators Partnerships, Water Safety Plans and Disaster Risk Management.