Technical Advice Concept Note: Addressing Global Water Challenges and Accelerating Progress on SDG 6 at the Country Level

Solving the water and sanitation crisis is today an urgent global priority with consequences far beyond water and sanitation, impacting inter alia economic development, food security, health, peace and security, and gender equality.

Against this backdrop, international milestone agreements provide a roadmap to address the water and sanitation-related challenges in a comprehensive manner, balancing the economic, environmental and social dimensions, and at the same time ensuring that no one is left behind.

In this context, Member States have expressed concern about their capacity to comprehensively review and accelerate progress towards meeting the global water and sanitation related goals. To enable this, the United Nations’ and World Bank Group’s High-level Panel on Water as well as the Global High-level Panel on Water and Peace have recommended the establishment of UN meetings on water at the highest possible level.

Therefore, in this Technical Advice Concept Note, a UN-Water appointed Task Force explores the feasibility, format, structure, periodicity, budgetary and operational aspects of possible UN high-level meetings on water and sanitation.