“Healthcare facilities are where vulnerable people seek healing,” said Dr. Hans Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe. “However, without adequate water, sanitation and hygiene, for too many people, expected care can become unintended harm.”
Dr. Klug stressed that health care is “being tested like never before,” and insisted that strengthening it is an investment in the face of crises.
As part of this work, a UN-led meeting in Budapest this week led more than 40 countries to adopt a program to build more resilient and equitable water, sanitation and hygiene systems, often referred to as WASH.
The seventh session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Protocol on Water and Health is co-chaired by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the United Nations health agency.
The protocol on water and health remains in place The only legally binding international treaty Clearly linking environmental protection, water management and public health. It has helped countries translate their commitments into tangible improvements, such as expanding access to safe drinking water, protecting biodiversity, and strengthening disease surveillance.
However, significant challenges remain. In addition to the 118 million people in Europe whose healthcare facilities lack basic sanitation, another 70 million people lack access to safely managed drinking water, and 185 million people do not have access to safe sanitation. These vulnerabilities are exacerbated as droughts, floods and cyber threats disrupt services.
“The Protocol is an example of how multilateral cooperation impacts our daily lives, but we still have a lot of work to do,” said Tatiana Molesyan, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.
Practical tools, of global importance
The Protocol provides a toolkit of evidence-based resources, such as the Equitable Access and Water Safety Planning Scorecard, already in use in more than 30 countries. The international agreement has supported at least 1,500 facility assessments and helped guide policies in schools, hospitals and urban planning.
Countries across the European region have pledged to ensure safe water and sanitation for all, through commitments such as the Budapest Declaration and the Sustainable Development Goals, “But no one tells you how to do it. This is what the protocol provides.” stressed Marta Varga, Vice President of Protocol.
Concrete measures under the Protocol include efforts to ensure safe water, sanitation and menstrual hygiene in schools; monitoring wastewater for dangerous viruses including COVID-19; To address the spread of Legionella bacteria in domestic water systems and develop plans for carbon neutral water services.
Ahead of the UN climate summit in Brazil, the UN Economic Commission for Europe urged governments to put water and sanitation systems at the heart of resilience to climate change – a message highlighted by Secretary-General António Guterres in a message to the meeting: “Progress on water and sanitation supports progress across multiple Sustainable Development Goals.”
