Water Policy 6 Number 1 (2004) 67-85

International efforts to improve access to water and sanitation in the developing world: a good start, but more is needed

Alan D. Hecht

Office of Research and Development, US Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Mail Code 8101, Washington, DC 20460, USA

Considerable international efforts are underway to address water and sanitation needs in developing countries. The 2003 G8 Action Plan on water sets the right tone, but more is needed. Three activities deserve additional support and greater cooperation between government and non-government organizations. These are: immediate steps to improve health and sanitation, multilateral efforts to foster good governance, and the development of innovative financial mechanisms to make local and investment capital available for water infrastructure development. Public understanding of these three approaches is often misunderstood, as evinced by the Stakeholder Dialogue at the 2003 World Water Forum. Achieving the Millennium goals on water and sanitation requires greater public and private sector cooperation in these three areas. A significant accomplishment for the next G8 meeting would be to strengthen partnerships between public and private sectors in these areas.

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