German WASH Network News

On 5 September 2023, the Joint Operational Framework: WASH Resilience, Conflict Sensitivity and Peacebuilding was officially released. The JOF sets out the thinking, a theory of change and key steps for putting the Triple Nexus into practice within the WASH sector . It provides practical support to new and existing WASH programmes and coordination platfroms to build capacities relating to resilience, conflict sensitivity and peace within WASH systems.

The first intergovernmental UN conference on water in 46 years will take place in New York from March 22-24. At the mid-term of the 2030 Agenda, it is possibly the last significant milestone at which the global community can turn the corner to still achieve SDG 6 “Water and Sanitation” by 2030.

In New York, we are co-hosting an official side event with our members on the human rights to water and sanitation. WASH United, the Water Integrity Network and Viva con Agua are leading the organization of side events, which are outlined here.

Together with our global partner network SuSanA we are convening a political dialogue and learning event on the future of the sanitation and hygiene sectors as key contributors to global health and resilience. The event will be held on 11 October in Berlin and is intended as a German contribution to the preparatory process of the UN Water Conference 2023.

Renowned international stakeholders provide an insight into the status and challenges of the sector and what is required to achieving SDG 6 by 2030. Building upon these inputs, a roundtable of policy makers and sanitation champions will discuss the potential role of Germany with regard to current political processes, global trends and hot topics. In three workshops, input will be collected from all participants in reflection of what has been previously discussed.

Please find further information here.

For the ninth time, the annual Menstrual Hygiene Day will take place on 28 May 2022. At the heart of #MHDay2022 is the shared commitment to breaking the taboo and destigmatising menstruation so that menstrual hygiene can be improved worldwide.

Particularly in emergency situations, such as when fleeing conflict or in refugee camps, menstrual hygiene is often more difficult due to a lack of menstrual products, limited access to water and a lack of privacy in communal toilets for those who menstruate. To focus on these challenging conditions, for this year’s Menstrual Hygiene Day, specific campaign materials have been produced for Menstrual Hygiene Management in Emergencies (MHMiE). More information and the campaign material can be found here.

The global Triple-Nexus in WASH – Initiative invites to the Regional Exchange Forum “Building WASH Resilience and Sustainability” for the Eastern & Southern Africa region, to review policy recommendations identified through a locally led preparatory process and to provide advice on how to operationalise the humanitarian-development-peace nexus. The event will introduce what the nexus is, give an insight into challenges and potentials for WASH practitioners and reflect upon the policy implications with a diverse group of high-level individuals. Outputs will feed into the development of a Joint Operational Framework “Resilience & Peace”. The event is convened by the German WASH Network, the Global WASH Cluster, SWA, UNICEF and financially supported by the German Federal Foreign Office. The regional consultative prep-process is organised by regional host Sign of Hope.

Please register here

How can the climate resilience of WASH activities be improved? And how to integrate the climate perspective in WASH projects? These and further questions will be answered in the upcoming learning event on climate resilience of humanitarian WASH services, to which we cordially invite you. The online course, which is free of charge, will take place on Thursday, 24 March 2022.

Find more information and the registration form here.

How can we strengthen resilience and sustainability in WASH in disaster-prone and fragile contexts? Which new approaches are promising? What partnerships are needed? To address these questions,  the German WASH Network, together with SWA, GWC and UNICEF, invites you to the online event “Building Resilience and Sustainability in Disaster-Prone and Fragile Contexts” on 1 September 2021, 2:00 pm CEST.

Based on case studies from Uganda, Honduras and Burkina Faso, the event aims to demystify the approach and showcase effective collaboration to achieve WASH outcomes that build resilience and sustainable development, and contribute to social cohesion and peace where possible. Further inputs from KFW and USAID will fuel the discussion on how to generate global support for scaling up the approach.

Find more information and the registration here.

28.05.2021 is #MH Day. Together with our member WASH United, we call for action against the taboo and stigmatisation of menstruation.

Around 600 million girls and women do not have access to hygienic toilets while menstruating. In emergency situations where people are dependent on humanitarian aid, such as in refugee camps, the challenges are exacerbated. Holistic menstrual hygiene management (MHM) is needed. This includes awareness campaigns, access to hygiene items, and appropriate sanitation facilities.

The WASH Network and WASH United are increasingly building MHM capacity to support humanitarian organisations particularly in implementing MHM awareness campaigns. We thank the German Foreign Office for funding these activities.

Info and materials: menstrualhygiene.org

On March 22 is World Water Day. The members of the German WASH Network use this day to communicate the importance of the topic and to strengthen political will. The theme of the year is “valuing water”. For us it is a fundamental basis of life and human development. So what is the water worth to you? Use the hashtag # water2me to include short text or video statements in the global campaign.

We communicate awareness campaigns of  our members in Germany and in the local context via our Facebook page.

If you would like to get involved personally, then take part in the Run4Water organised by Viva con Agua.

After the launch of the Compendium of Sanitation Technologies in Emergencies almost 2 years ago we are excited to announce that this publication is now also available as an interactive online platform. This eCompendium is a user-friendly online capacity development tool that supports and enables decision making through real time filtering and configuration of entire sanitation and FSM service chain solutions in emergency settings. It has been developed in close collaboration between the German WASH Network, Eawag, SuSanA and the Global WASH Cluster and its partners and was financially supported by the German Federal Office and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. The tool is open source generated and can be used free of charge. So far, the eCompendium is available as a Beta version and will be continuously updated and expanded in the coming weeks and months. It will soon also be available in French and Arabic. Further information and the link to the platform you will find here.

This was the burning question discussed at a learning and working event organised and facilitated by the German WASH Network at UNHCR in Geneva in December 2019. We have taken the initiative to advance current initiatives with great momentum: the Global WASH Cluster (GWC) is developing a global roadmap to refocus the sector in its strategic thinking and the reformulation of the Sanitation and Water for All-Partnership (SWA) strategy provided another window of opportunity to strive for a harmonization of development and humanitarian actors and frameworks.

The very promising results of the event will inform the GWC Global Roadmap and will feed into the SWA strategy process. Many tangible actions to be carried out by the two global platforms and its partners have been identified. The formation of a working group aiming to follow up and drive the humanitarian development nexus agenda was recommended by a majority of participants.

Read more in the event report.

For the first time we successfully conducted the new Global WASH Cluster Training on market-based approaches (MBP)and cash & voucher assistance (CVA) for WASH in the Asia region. 25 selected humanitarians from nine Asian countries experienced an intensive and very practice-oriented week in the WASH training centre of the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) in Jatinangor, Indonesia. On the basis of realistic case studies, three groups each went through the entire project cycle to plan a market-based humanitarian intervention.

The training was organized by the German Toilet Organization and UNICEF, supported by the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC) and financed by the German Federal Foreign Office.

Find further Information on the Training

We are proud to present the new guidance of the Global WASH Cluster (GWC) on Market-Based-Programming and Cash & Voucher Assistance for WASH. This guidance is a result of the collaboration with the GWC’s Technical Working Group for “Cash & Markets”. The development of the guidance was financially supported by the Federal Foreign Office of Germany (AA) and the German WASH Network. The layout was created by the German Toilet Organization.

Download: https://www.washnet.de/en/publications/

In the course of the training series “WASH in Emergencies” (WiE), participants learned a lot about sanitation, wastewater management and hygiene promotion in emergencies. The basic WiE course included topics like the WASH basics in humanitarian aid, the WASH cluster, Sphere and WASH minimum standards in humanitarian aid and various project examples and hands-on exercises. Thanks to all involved for the successful course.

The “WASH in Emergencies” courses are an initiative of the WASH network, which is funded by the German Federal Foreign Office and developed and implemented by the German Toilet Organization, arche noVa, Malteser International, Die Johanniter and BORDA.

In April 2018 the first WASH in Emergencies Training of Trainers (WASH ToT) took place in Beirut, Lebanon. The aim of the training was to strengthen local capacity to develop, implement and support national or regional WASH trainings through a transformative learning experience, where participants develop new knowledge, skills and attitude on how to promote learning of adult people. The participants were WASH experts from all over the world who had already participated in previous Regional WASH Workshops conducted by the German WASH Network. The WASH ToT has been developed by the German WASH Network in cooperation with the Federal Foreign Office and with the support of an experienced Sphere ToT Trainer. Some impressions from the workshop can be found here.

CBM and Handicap International will host the two-day seminar “Disability-inclusive Design in Humanitarian Action at WASH, Shelter and Camp Facility Design” on April 23 and 24, 2018 in Berlin. The training will address issues such as how people with disabilities can be actively involved in infrastructure-related humanitarian programs and how humanitarian infrastructure designs can be planned, prepared, implemented and assessed in a disability-inclusive manner.

The seminar will be held in English. Detailed information and an email address for registration can be found here.

The Global WASH Cluster (GWC) will be holding its annual WASH Cluster meeting from 10th to 11th of April in Berlin, Germany. The meeting will be hosted by the German WASH Network with the support of the German Federal Foreign Office. For further information click on the picture on the right hand-side.

Following the GWC Meeting, the informal Emergency Interagency WASH Group (ACF, Care, ICRC, IFRC, IRC, Oxfam, MSF, UNHCR, and UNICEF) presents the 8th Emergency Environmental Health Forum (EEHF) from 12th to 13th of April. The event will be hosted by the German WASH Network in close collaboration with the Secretariat of the Sustainable Sanitation Alliance (SuSanA) at GIZ. For further information click on the picture on the right hand-side.

Last week, the 20th meeting of the German WASH network took place in Bonn. There it was decided that both the Christoffel-Blindenmission and Terra Tech will be included in the WASH network. After the members had informed about their current projects and events, the participants discussed the upcoming Annual WASH Cluster Meeting as well as the Emergency Environmental Health Forum, which will be hosted by the WASH network in Berlin in April. Other topics included the BMZ’s water strategy and the position paper of the WASH network.

To discuss the current situation and the challenges of the integration of cash transfer and market based programming within the humanitarian WASH sector, the German WASH Network conducted a learning event from January, 24th to 25th, in Berlin.

The event acted as a platform for the Technical Working Group (TwiG) “Cash and Markets” of the Global WASH Cluster, on the one hand to report on progress and share new evidence and on the other hand to learn from the audience experiences – not only within the WASH sector but also from other sectors or thematic areas. Key partners such as Oxfam, Save the Children and UNHCR presented results from ongoing studies and projects aimed at improving the evidence base and the effectiveness of working with Cash & Markets in WASH. With other sectors like shelter common issues, demands and potential synergies were discussed. Case studies from Yemen and Nigeria fueled group discussion on four identified main challenges: 1) Institutionalisation of Cash, 2) Cash & Inter-Cluster Coordination, 3) Programme Quality and 4) Measurements of Outcomes.

Participants learned a lot about sanitation, wastewater management and hygiene promotion in emergencies in five days. The second module of the WiE Crash Course included hardware (technical solutions, toilet models), software (including local people participation, hygiene promotion methods, inclusion of vulnerable groups) as well as self-tests in role-playing games and simulations.

Also next year there will be another WiE course series in Germany, more information is available on Facebook or on www.washnet.de/en/.

The “WASH in Emergencies” course series is an initiative of the WASH network, which is funded by the German Federal Foreign Office, developed and implemented by the German Toilet Organization, arche noVa, Malteser International, Johanniter Auslandshilfe and BORDA.

At the Regional WASH Workshop in Dakar concerning “Strengthen Humanitarian Preparedness and Response Capacity” participants came from DRC, Mali, Cote d’Ivoire, Mauritania and from another 10 african states. Thematically it was about Emergency WASH Assessment, Humanitarian Standards (SPHERE) and Menstrual Hygiene Management; the participants exchanged experience and learned from one another.

The WASH Workshop was carried out by a consortium consisting of arche noVa e.V., Malteser International, Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe e.V., German Toilet Organization and its local partners.

Start of the WASH in Emergencies Crash Courses was the unit “water supply in emergencies” in Dresden. Thanks to the arche noVa for a great cooperation to discuss issues of hydrogeology, water quality, installation of water wells and cross-cutting issues such as gender and inclusion. Participants also tested their new knowledge about water tests and material directly in practice.

The German WASH Network successfully conducted its second Regional WASH Workshop in Tacloban, Philippines.  Local staff from German WASH Network member organisations and its local partners have been invited to exchange their experience and knowledge in humanitarian WASH. The facilitators from the German Toilet Organization and arche noVa as well as resource persons from UNICEF, Oxfam and BORDA shared their expertise particularly to strengthening actors in the fields of emergency preparedness and response. As part of the workshop the participants had the chance to visit several WASH in Schools projects, a sludge treatment facility and a sanitation marketing project in Tacloban – the city that has been hit hard by typhoon Yolanda in 2013.

Thanks to all resource persons and participants from the various countries and organisations involved. It was a perfect mix of intense networking, knowledge sharing and – not to forget – a lot of fun.

On June 24, 2017, the 2. Humanitarian WASH Tech Day took place at the premises of the training institute of the Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW) in Neuhausen, Germany. The event was conducted in close collaboration with the Department for Humanitarian Assistance of the German Federal Foreign Office and THW. This time there was a special focus on “Sanitation and Faecal Sludge Management in Emergencies”. Besides the presentation of a variety of technology developments for emergency settings there was a constructive discussion between relief equipment suppliers and WASH relief organisations. Thanks to all participants!

June 24, 2017, the 2. Humanitarian WASH Tech Day took place at the premises of the training institute of the Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW) in Neuhausen, Germany. The event was conducted in close collaboration with the Department for Humanitarian Assistance of the German Federal Foreign Office and THW. This time there was a special focus on “Sanitation and Faecal Sludge Management in Emergencies”. Besides the presentation of a variety of technology developments for emergency settings there was a constructive discussion between relief equipment suppliers and WASH relief organisations. Thanks to all participants!

The German WASH Network and the German Network against Neglected Tropical Diseases (DNTDs) met on May 31 2017 to discuss cooperation between them. WASH has a key impact on diseases like Schistosomiasis or Trachoma. The participants discussed the WASH-NTD Strategy of the WHO and listened to project examples from Tanzania, Ethiopia and DRC. We are happy that Dr. Georg Kippels, member of the German parliament, joined part of the discussion. We look forward to further cooperation.

The German WASH Network successfully conducted it’s first Regional WASH Workshop in Beirut, Lebanon, as part of the three target regions Middle East, Asia and Western Africa. Experts from locally active German WASH Network member organisation and its local implementing partners such as Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan and Turkey enriched the exchange of knowledge. The facilitators from the German Toilet Organzation and The Johanniter as well as many other resource persons from UNICEF, UNHCR, GIZ, Oxfam shared their expertise particularly to strengthening actors in the fields of emergency preparedness and response. A field trip to Beka’a Valley perfectly complemented the exchange platform, in which World Vision Lebanon and MEDAIR provided informative insights into their WASH projects in Informal Tented Settlements of Syrian refugees. Thank you all for your active participation and making this event a great success!

The “WASH in Emergencies” course was successfully conducted in Berlin. We thank all speakers and participants for their contributions and to making this event exciting and constructive.

The Course is an initiative of the German WASH Network in cooperation with the Federal Foreign Office and is developed and conducted by the German Toilet Organization, arche noVa e.V., Bremen Overseas Research and Development Association as well as further networking partners.

The German WASH Network is again conducting a regional WASH workshop series in 2017 aiming at strengthening local WASH disaster preparedness and response capacities in the three target regions Middle East, Asia and Western Africa.
The workshops are mainly targeting staff and experts from German WASH Network member organisation and its local implementing partners working in the respective regions. Please feel free to forward this invitation to interested colleagues, your regional/local implementing structures and/or relevant local partner organisations.
The workshops are part of a strategic portfolio of activities developed in close cooperation with the German Federal Foreign Office, carried out by a consortium consisting of arche noVa e.V., Malteser International, Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe e.V. and German Toilet Organization.

For those interested you will find further information and the application forms here.

The theme of the first WASH-Tech Day on October 27 was the water supply in emergencies, focusing on “small systems” for the household and community level. In addition to the introduction of technological solutions and the exchange with suppliers, there was a capacity building block for water analysis. The aim of the day was to promote a constructive dialogue with the suppliers and to improve technological solutions.

From 29^th of August until the 2^nd of September the WASH in Emergencies Course “Water supply in emergencies” took place in Dresden. In cooperation with arche nova e.V. and the German Toilet Organization e.V. topics of hydrogeology, water quality, well drilling and cross-cutting issues such as gender and inclusion in the water sector were covered. Participants were also able to apply their new-found knowledge in the field of water testing and material customer directly in practice. We thank all participants, the German Toilet Organization and arche nova e.V. for the exciting days.

The Course is an initiative of the German WASH Network in cooperation with the Federal Foreign Office and is developed and conducted by the German Toilet Organization, arche noVa e.V., and BORDA.

WASH Network Sessions

The Stockholm World Water Conference in 2016 is over. The German WASH Network prepared two workshops:

The seminar “Upscaling the WASH Nutrition Nexus for Sustainable (Body) Growth” aimed in the context of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to advance the thematic interface between WASH and Nutrition on an international level. Besides the presentation of new publications and tools, the global platforms Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) Partnership and Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement entered into a dialogue and will play a pioneering role in promoting the link between WASH and Nutrition.

In the session “Opportunities of Marked-Based Programming to Address Humanitarian Needs WASH”, options were shown how local markets can contribute to WASH needs in humanitarian aid. The session included the report of many experiences and discussed the prevailing challenges and difficulties of donor, cluster and development perspective.

Picking up on the themes of the seminars, the topics have been addressed in the SuSanA Working Group meetings more deeply.

The Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) Partnership conducted a multi-stakeholder dialogue at Stockholm World Water Week 2016. Topic of discussion was the follow-up for the sanitation, water and hygiene-related targets of the Sustainable Development Goal 6. Beside ministers from Ethiopia and Tanzania (also Chair of AMCOW) the panel consisted of representatives from the private sector, civil society and the World Bank. Thilo Panzerbieter (Chair of the German WASH Network), as a civil society SWA Steering Committee Member, stressed the importance of linking water and sanitation with other SDGs. He spoke in detail about the opportunities for global platforms to provide guidance to countries at this critical time – with the recent introduction of the new global agenda 2030. As an example he highlighted the progressing collaboration between SWA and the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement.

From the 3^rd July until the 8^th July 2016, the Regional WASH Workshop Africa took place in Arua, Uganda. The workshop was developed and conducted in close cooperation with Malteser International and the German Toilet Organization. It aimed at strengthening local WASH disaster preparedness and response capacities of German WASH Network member organisations and its local partners in crisis prone regions in Africa. With participants from over 12 different African countries and more than 10 different organisations it was a perfect networking and knowledge exchange opportunity for all involved actors. We would like to thank all participants for this intense and exciting week.

The Regional WASH workshop series is part of a strategic portfolio of activities developed in close cooperation between the German WASH Network and the German Federal Foreign Office and is organised and conducted by Malteser International, Johanniter Auslandshilfe, arche noVa and German Toilet Organization.

On World Water Day 2016 the Water Integrity Network (WIN) will release in Berlin its newest report revealing corruption’s costly impact on the world’s water resources. The Water Integrity Global Outlook 2016 will share examples of both corruption and good practices from communities, private sector, civil society and governments. The report and the examples will show how corruption or the lack of transparency are enormous obstacles in achieving the new sustainable development goals. With Dr. Tania Rödiger-Vorwerk, Deputy Director-General at BMZ and Peter Glas, Chair of the OECD Water Governance Initiative two high profile guests will set the scene for discussion. The German WASH Network will contribute with remarks given by Thilo Panzerbieter, Chair of the German WASH Network.

From 23^rd -27^th of November the third module of the intensive course “WASH in Emergencies” took place in Dresden. This time with a special focus on water supply in humanitarian aid. In five exciting days the participants were able to broaden their knowledge in the field of water production, treatment and distribution of emergency relief. The topics included “soft skills” such as hygiene promotion and additionally the inclusion of “hardware” such as water analysis and laboratory technology, or the nature of soils and water pipes. Overall a good mix of knowledge acquisition and practical examples along with stimulating discussions of the participants from the field took place.

From November 11^th – 12^th the WASH Network invited to the International Policy Dialogue Forum on WASH and Food Security in Bonn.
A major challenge is to overcome malnutrition this requires a closer cooperation between the two sectors WASH and food security. Strategies and interventions of the two sectors have to be interwoven. In the context of so-called Mirror Sessions experts and decision makers, performing similar functions for their sectors, of both sectors discussed potential prospects and strategies.

The first two ‘Regional WASH Workshops to Strengthen Humanitarian Preparedness and Response Capacity’ took place in Bangkok, Thailand from September 07 – 11 and in Kampala, Uganda from October 05-10.

The workshops facilitated a vital knowledge exchange between the participants and with key actors of the humanitarian WASH system like UNHCR and UNICEF.

Thanks to the German Toilet Organization for moderating and facilitating and to Malteser International and Arche Nova for the organisation and logistical responsibility of the workshop.

The workshop is part of the strategic portfolio of activities developed and carried out in close cooperation with the German Federal Foreign Office to respond to the growing demand for qualified humanitarian WASH capacities.

The second Module of the “WASH in Emergencies” workshop in Berlin finished successfully. This time with a special focus on sanitation and faecal sludge management in humanitarian aid. We`d like to thank all invited speakers and participants for 5 highly interesting days and are looking forward to the third module in November in Dresden with the focus on water supply in emergency aid.

The “WASH in Emergencies” workshop is an initiative of the German WASH-Network in close cooperation with the German Federal Foreign Office and was conducted and developed by German Toilet Organization, arche noVa e.V.and BORDA.

Click here for more information and registration!

In the course of the World Water Week we also want to annouce our seminar „Humanitarian and Development WASH-approaches“ in cooperation with the Federal Foreign Office, Germany. The event is opened the Jordanian Minister for water. We are looking forward to an interesting event and active attendance.

Get more information on the official World Water Week programme or on our event´s website.

Please come and catch with the Network at the World Water Week in Stockholm. Several member organisations of the Network will be represented and as main convener of two events it is easy to find us. First of all we would like to promote our session on WASH in Nutrition with Action contre la Faim (France), Bundesministerium für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung (BMZ), Sustainable Sanitation Alliance (SuSanA), London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicineand others. The event is part of a greater initiative by the WASH-Netzwerk on the nexus, which will lead to the Bonn WASH-Nutrition Forum 2015 in November.

For more information click on the flyer or visit our event´s website.

After 5 exciting and inspiring days, the first part of the workshop series “WASH in Emergencies” was completed successfully. Next to interesting presentations by experienced international WASH-Experts about hygiene promotion as essential WASH component, practice-oriented case studies and exercises were used as participative methods to find solution approaches for WASH in the humanitarian aid.

After the successful start of the seminar series, we are looking forward to the 2nd module which will take place in September in Berlin. The focus of the 2nd module are the topics sanitation and wastewater management in the humanitarian aid. Some slots for the 2nd module are still available!

Click here for more information and registration!

The practice-oriented workshop gives a comprehensive overview of the technical and non-technical intervention possibilities, features and challenges of WASH in humanitarian aid.

Click here for more information and registration

Under the slogan #WasserMarsch we will walk 4 km through Cologne starting at the Aachener Weiher and ending with a final announcement at the Bahnhofsvorplatz. Together we will fetch water at the Aachener Weiher with buckets and jerrycans (please bring something!) which are used in many countries to collect water. With a 4 km march through Cologne`s inner city we want to solidarise with the 780 million people worldwide who still do not have access to clean drinking water and have to walk this distance every day to get water. Water and sanitation are human rights and should be available for everybody – here in Europe and in the so-called developing countries as well as in crises, wars and catastrophes.

Find the event on Facebook!

Togehter with the German Federal Foreign Office the German WASH Network convened a seminar with the title: “Streamlining Strategies for Humanitarian Aid in the WASH Sector” at this year Stockholm World Water Week on Wednesday 3th September 2014. Together with the seminar participants we dicussed the strengths and weaknesses of existing humanitarian aid strategies in order  to come up with specific recommendations in support of on-going national strategy development processes (e.g. Germany). With the initiative we aim to reinforce the dialogue between governments and non-state-actors in order to specifically increase the coordination of policy-making and the collaboration.

Click here to find further informationen about the seminar

We are delighted to announce the launch of the new German WASH Network publication on “Linking Relief and Development in the WASH Sector”. The publication serves as a current snapshot of the sector at the interface between humanitarian assistance and development cooperation. It intends to foster the mutual understanding of each other’s field of work and provides impulses for fuelling the on-going international debate on how to better link relief, rehabilitation and development. A wide range of sector professionals have been asked to provide feedback reflecting either their individual and/or organisational views and experiences regarding current challenges, opportunities as well as recommendations for the way forward.

Download publication

German Wash Network celebrated World Water Day 2014 with a variety of actions. We started with a conference speaking about the future of WASH projects with Thomas Silberhorn, new Parliamentary State Secretary of the Federal Ministy for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

With the slogan “Water is life – Water is a human right” Viva con Agua organized the 3rd #lassLaufen Demonstration in Berlin.

The World Water Week in Stockholm is the annual focal point for practitioners and experts to discuss the globe’s water and sanitation issues. Each year the World Water Week addresses a particular theme to enable a deeper examination of a specific water-related topic. The thematic scope of this year is “Water Cooperation – building partnerships”.

The German WASH Network together with the Sanitation and Water for All Partnership (SWA), the Federal Foreign Office, the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and UNSGAB are jointly convening a seminar titled “Aid Effectiveness in WASH Relief to Development Transition” on September 5 (from 09:00-12:30).

900 million people world wide live without access to clean water and 2,6 billion without basic sanitation. This paper is a message to politics and civil society that we all should understand the topic WASH as what it is: an essential foundation for any kind of sustainable development. On just seven pages we go to show why access to water, sanitation and hygiene is a human right and why it is so important for education, health, social and economic development and food and nutrition security. We have also investigated how we and politicians can contribute to supplying everyone with water and sanitary facilities and to help internalise and implement principles of hygiene.

You can read our demands directed at the national government on p. 9!

Have fun reading and distributing it!

//PDF download position paper here