Safe drinking water, sanitation, and good hygiene are fundamental to health, survival, growth and development. However, these basic necessities are still a luxury for many of the world’s poor people. Over 1.1 billion of our fellow citizens do not have access to clean drinking water, while 2.6 billion lack basic sanitation. Safe drinking water and basic sanitation are critical for maintaining good health and the risks of being overlooked are high.
Another related issue is wastewater pollution, which remains one of the biggest challenges of our time. Estimates say that around 80% of all wastewater is discharged into the world’s waterways every day, posing a serious risk for the health of ecosystems and humans alike, as well as severe repercussions on socio-economic activities. The goal of wastewater management is to protect, clean, and reuse water. This means that water resources must be judiciously managed so that clean water is available for human use. Further, it also must be clean enough to release into oceans, lakes, and rivers after it has been used.
The United Nations World Toilet Day celebrated annually on the 19th of November, draws the world's attention to the importance of accessible toilets and inspires action to tackle the global sanitation crisis and achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6: clean water and sanitation for all by 2030. While substantial progress has been made in the last decades regarding access to clean drinking water and sanitation, billions of people - mostly in rural areas - still lack these basic services.
This year, the Global Wastewater Initiative (GW²I) organizes a Virtual Symposium over the span of two days to discuss wastewater management and sanitation provision across the Asia-Pacific, African, and Caribbean regions. The event also aims to discuss how we are dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, wastewater and sanitation, and to also dive deep into the topic of wastewater solutions.
Join the event on Thursday, 18 November 2021, from 3:30 PM – 5:30 PM Nairobi time (EAT) and on Friday, 19 November 2021, from 8:00 AM – 10 AM Nairobi time (EAT). Please register using this link.
Recording of the second day: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/recording/4746287551536400898.
