End Water Poverty Blog

Asamoah Gyan Walks for Water & Sanitation!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 17:13:00 +0000

Daniel Hires has recently joined WASH United, one of the coordinating organisations of the World Walks for Water and Sanitation campaign. Here, he writes about Asamoah Gyan, the star striker of the Ghanaian national football team, who is Walking for Water and Sanitation and asking everybody to join him.

Asamoah Gyan has today announced his support for the global World Walks for Water and Sanitation event that demands action to address the world’s largest crisis – water and sanitation.

From 17 to 25 March 2012, thousands of people will walk together to demand political change. They walk to strengthen national advocacy around the crisis and get government ministers to attend the Sanitation and Water for All High-Level Meeting in April 2012, where necessary steps to end the crisis can be taken.

The Asamoah Gyan Foundation will launch in June 2012 and work on improving Water, Sanitation and Hygiene related issues, especially as they affect girls. As a close partner of WASH United, one of organizers of the World Walks for Water and Sanitation event, Asamoah Gyan is looking forward to participating and has shot this short video to mobilize people around the world to join or organise a Walk!

By acting together all over the world, we can make governments take the actions needed to ensure clean water and sanitation for all. Now is the time to tell the world's politicians about our concern! Now is the time the World Walks for Water and Sanitation!

To find out where a walk is taking place close to you, visit www.worldwalksforwater.org.

2012: High expectations of the Sanitation and Water for All High Level Meeting

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 11:36:00 +0000

Rolien Sasse is the CEO of Simavi in the Netherlands, a founding member of the End Water Poverty campaign. Here, she shares her expectations for 2012 of the Sanitation and Water for All Partnership.

On 20 April 2012, the Sanitation and Water for All High Level Meeting (SWA-HLM) will take place in Washington DC. And at the end of 2011, the Dutch government that our Minister of International Cooperation, Mr. Ben Knapen, intends to be present!

Soon after this, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and the United States confirmed that they are intending to attend at a Ministerial level too! These are hugely important steps and will encourage civil society organisations and those governments attending the meeting to push other political leaders to join them.

The Dutch government has also gone a step further by promising to take the lead in coordinating and fine-tuning the promises that European donor countries will bring to the High-Level Meeting. As a world leader in water with proven active involvement and support for the SWA process, this is a perfect role for the Dutch government. And I hope that they help to ensure good outcomes from the meeting!

Within the End Water Poverty network of over 180 civil society organisations worldwide, we exchange information about Sanitation and Water for All. And it is good to hear that both in developing countries and in donor countries, civil society organizations are involved in national preparatory processes. This will increase the chances of an effective High Level Meeting and ensure that voices from marginalized groups are heard.

And that is my simple expectation for 2012 from the SWA as a political process: a successful High Level Meeting. This will lead to direct results on awareness and increased political commitment towards the realization of safe drinking water and sanitation for all, especially marginalized groups. As a Steering Committee member representing the civil society organizations within the EWP network, I am looking forward to working towards a successful High-Level Meeting together.

New starter's guide to using Twitter!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 11:02:00 +0000

If you read our blogs and get our newsletters, you have probably heard us mentioning Twitter and 'tweets' pretty regularly! But you might be wondering what this Twitter thing is and whether it's really worth your time and effort to get to grips with.

So, here is a very basic guide to Twitter and how you can get your organisation signed up and 'tweeting' today! Do have a go and if you have any questions at all, just send me an email (or a tweet?!) at jenniferwilliams@endwaterpoverty.org (or endwaterpoverty is our Twitter name!)

So, what is Twitter?

Twitter is a social network used by millions of people used to send quick, frequent updates telling your friends, family, co-workers, celebrities and others what you are doing. It's a great way to connect with other water and sanitation organisations, target decision makers, contact potential supporters and increase the reach of your organisation.

Just follow these steps:

1. Set up your account

Go to www.twitter.com to get started. Enter your name, email, and a password. Click ‘Sign up’.

You will now be taken to a second screen where you can select a username. This is the name by which you will be known on Twitter. Your real name is probably best—if it’s available. If not, you can try using amiddle initial or an abbreviation.

Now click on the ‘Create my account’ button. That’s it! Ready to get started!

Next, Twitter will assist you in getting started. It will give you the opportunity to “follow” a few friends or celebrities. You can opt out of these steps by clicking the ‘Skip this step’link. Twitter will also give you a chance to see if some of your friends are on Twitter by checking your online address book. However, your contacts will have to use GMail, Hotmail, Yahoo, or AOL for you to find them.

2. Choose your settings

To do this, go to your Twitter homepage and click on the ‘Settings’ link. Make whatever other changes you want and click ‘Save’.

Now click on the Profile tab where you can upload your picture. This is important because many Twitter users won’t follow you if you don’t have a picture – they won’t know if it’s you or not! You can also enter your location, website address and a brief bio/ statement about yourself.
When you are finished, click the ‘Save’ button

3. Follow family, friends and other organisations

If you haven’t done so already, add your family and friends by clicking in the ‘Search’ field at the top of your home page. You can type in a username or first and last name. When you do, you will get a list of users who match your search criteria.

You can begin “following” them by simply clicking on the ‘Follow’ button.

4. Learn the basic commands for Tweeting

Think of Twitter as a conversation. When you update your status, you are speaking to all of your followers- and sometimes their followers too and so on. Everyone can hear what you have to say.

‘Reply’: If you want to direct your comments to one specific person but you are happy for everyone else to see this, use the ‘Reply’ function. You address the person by using the @symbol followed immediately by their Twitter username.

For example: @EndWaterPoverty I am organizing a Crisis Talk in Ghana.

Everyone who is following both you and End Water Poverty will see the message, but you would be specifically directing it to End Water Poverty. (Those who are not following both of us will not see the message.)

You can also use the @ function to refer to someone by name.

For example: I am really enjoying the planning meeting organized by @EndWaterPoverty and @FANnetwork.

The thing about using @ is that they are “clickable links.” If someone who is following me, clicks on one of the names eg. @FANnetwork they will automatically go to that person/organisation’s Twitter page. This will give them the opportunity to follow that person too.

Direct Messages: You can use direct messages to send a message to someone that nobody else will be able to see. To use this, simply click on the envelope picture.

Hashtags: A # symbol, called a hashtag, is used to mark keywords or topics in a post (tweet). It can be used as a way to categorize messages. It means that if you click on a hash tag, it will show you all the other tweets associated with that particular hashtag.

For example, we are using #walksforwater for the World Walks for Water and Sanitation campaign.

5. Start tweeting!

Length of tweet: The main thing you need to know is that the message can be no longer than 140 characters long. If you use the website, the entry field will automatically count your characters.

How often? People disagree about this – some people say no more than six times a day, some people say you can tweet up to 10 times a day! So, it’s up to you! It might take you a while to get started so perhaps aim for once a day at first and build up your tweets from there!

Ready to get started? Why not send your first tweet now and mention us?! @endwaterpoverty

Boosting of efforts and a new zeal: Expectations from SWA during 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Yakub Hossain is from Bangladesh and is the civil society representative on the steering committee of the Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) global partnership, sitting alongside government representatives, development banks and many other key organizations. He is the Deputy Director of VERC, Bangladesh, and the representative of the Freshwater Action Network - South Asia (FANSA) on the Sanitation and Water for All partnership.

In between two SACOSANs (South Asia Conference on Sanitation) held in Delhi in 2009 and Colombo in 2011 a total of 750,000 children died in South-Asia. This attributes to poor sanitation, water quality and hygiene practice level prevalent in the region. Reasons behind poor progress despite efforts made can be viewed as – lack of broad based political will with clear-cut directions, absence of policies that support the sector to make visible progress in terms of benefits, lack of long-term action plans and insufficient resource mobilization. Communities are also absent in the planning and implementation process resulting in a lack of sustainable improvements to the situation.

Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) is a global partnership between developing countries, donors, multilateral agencies, civil societies and development organizations committed to addressing all the above mentioned critical barriers to achieving universal and sustainable sanitation and drinking water access for everyone, with a an immediate focus on achieving the Millennium Development Goals. As a member of the Steering Committee from the Civil Society Organizations in the South-Asia Region, I would like to see an upward trend in the national level achievement which contributes to all the countries in the region achieving the MDGs on water and sanitation.

This is not an easy task to elaborate within a few words! The first and foremost task of all the actors in the region ideally be a time bound and evidence based action plan supported by donors along with a strong and clear monitoring mechanism . Due to the effects of climate change , many of the countries in this region face innumerable loss in terms of assets and livelihood opportunities along with poor water and sanitation infrastructure. SWA needs to take a clear stand on this issue to reduce the suffering of these climate change victims. Diverse cultural contexts are also another point of concern in respect of equitable access to water and sanitation for many of the indigenous communities. The Sanitation and Water for All Partnership needs to bring this to the notice of the national governments in the region to ensure equity and justice.

Since 2012 is quite close to the MDG timeline, we need to boost up the collective efforts to fulfil water and sanitation commitments. This is a human rights issue. Government and Civil Society Organizations in the region need to work shoulder to shoulder on this. The SWA can bring attention to these issues and help to ensure that the required capacity is installed in the Government and Civil Society Organizations that will help in achieving the MDG.

To give my presence and participation in the SWA process a new zeal, I plan to be more active and vibrant in advocating the issues of critical concern. I want to reduce the sufferings of the people in this region and thus I need more and more support, encouragement, knowledge and guidance from the FANSA family and beyond.

Update: 125,954 people are walking – will you join them?

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 14:28:00 +0000

Alexandra Chitty is an intern at End Water Poverty. Here, she updates about the campaign activities that End Water Poverty's partners and members will be undertaking around World Water Day 2012.

From Benin to Brunei, Nepal to the Netherlands, 125,954 people have already signed up to walk for water and sanitation around World Water Day 2012.

WaterAid Burkina Faso walking for water in Ouagadougou in 2011

Walks for Water and Sanitation are already planned in 28 countries and are being organised by organisations such as Interpal, the Hassan Foundation, AOSED, Global Water International, and Water Wheel. Walkers are hoping to encourage governments take action to end the water and sanitation crisis whereby an eighth of the world’s population lives without access to safe water and two fifths of the world’s population lacks access to adequate sanitation.

This is a great opportunity for you to make your voices heard on an incredibly important issue, so if you haven’t already signed up visit http://www.worldwalksforwater.org/eng to find out more.

We have created some fantastic tools for you to use when planning your walks. Click on our ‘Resources’ tab to find a toolkit and poster, as well as an exciting new widget which you can place on your own website to tell your supporters and partners about the campaign event and encourage them to organise their own walks.

We are also updating our ‘Country Snapshot’ factsheets and will soon be uploading a promotional video for you to use. Watch this space...!

New widget for the World Walks for Water and Sanitation!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 10:32:00 +0000

We have a great new resource for the World Walks for Water and Sanitation: The Widget!

This brilliant online tool enables you to put a mini-version of the registration page on to your own website! It's a great way to tell your supporters about the campaign and encourage them to take part.

It's so simple to add this widget to your website by just pasting the code from the World Walks for Water and Sanitation resources section.

Please do use the Widget to spread awareness of the campaign!

Walking for Water and Sanitation in Welwyn!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 09:48:00 +0000

We organised a Walk for Water and Sanitation in Welwyn Garden City last week during our international advocacy planning meeting jointly with the Freshwater Action Network!

Thanks to Eklavya from Megh Pyne Abhiyan in India, who took these fantastic photos of the Walk:

Have you registered to take part in the World Walks for Water and Sanitation yet? Find out more, download resources and sign up here!

New videos!: This year's advocacy successes from partners and members across the globe!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 15:33:00 +0000

This year, we held our international campaigns planning meeting jointly with Freshwater Action Network (FAN Global). It was a hugely successful and dynamic few days, resulting in some ambitious yet realistic advocacy ideas.

One of the highlights of the week was the 'speed presentations' session on day one when representatives from End Water Poverty and FAN Global members and partners spoke about the advocacy work they have been doing over the past twelve months. They were so inspiring that we wanted to share them with you!:

Here, Depinder talks about the work of the India WASH Forum:

And Thilo from the German Toilet Organization shares their campaigning successes:

Rolando from FANCA in Costa Rica talks about their advocacy work:

Inna talks about the dynamic and exciting campaigning that has taken place in Burkina Faso over the past two years:

And John Oldfield from the WASH Advocacy Initiative talks about their work in Washington DC:

Mubu talks about the advocacy successes in Zambia this year:

Ngaba joined us from Malawi:

And Nathalie from FAN Mexico:

Finally, Shikha talks about the amazing advocacy work WaterAid and FANSA have been doing in Nepal:

For all the tweets and more photos and videos from the meeting, please visit our Storify page!

Crisis Talks – a round-up of events!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 13:27:00 +0000

Alexandra Chitty is an intern at End Water Poverty. Here, she writes about the Crisis Talks End Water Poverty's partners and members organised on World Toilet Day 2011.

On and around World Toilet Day, 19 November 2011, thousands participated in Crisis Talks to highlight the water and sanitation crisis which is killing 4,000 children under the age of five every day. Here is a summary of some of the innovative Crisis Talks held across the globe:

Why?

End Water Poverty’s partners and members organised Crisis Talks – public hearings in local communities with government ministers where people affected by the water and sanitation crisis were able to speak out about life without these basic services – to encourage decision makers of all levels to take action to increase water and sanitation provision worldwide, and to emphasise the importance of the Sanitation and Water for All High Level Meeting (HLM), an international meeting to be held in Washington DC on 20 April 2012 when world leaders from the Global North and South will meet to act upon the water and sanitation crisis.

Where?

In Nepal, Sanitary workers reported on the sanitation crisis to their Minister of Local Development and State Minister of Finance. They displayed a photo exhibition of public toilets to highlight the need to improve sanitation and a documentary was shown on the state of toilets in urban areas.

In Liberia, members of Liberia’s CSOs’ WASH Working Group organised Crisis Talks in seven of the country’s fifteen counties including Bong, Bomi, Gbarpolu, Lofa, Nimba, Montserrado, and Margibi. Political leaders, policy makers and the media were informed of the impact the lack of access to WASH has on the health and economic and social well-being of individuals, especially in hard-to-reach rural locations. As a result of these talks, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf reiterated that the New Poverty Reduction Strategy, PRS II, will prioritize access to water and sanitation and that asserted that sustainable safe sanitation must be a continuous government investment, both in infrastructure and in hygiene education.

In Burkina Faso, Crisis Talks were held in Kirsi and Saaba. Speakers expressed the challenging and painful nature of every-day life when access to clean water and adequate sanitation is absent. They highlighted the dangerous situation this crisis places women in, especially when walking to collect water. The ‘Open Defecation Free’ community of Darsalam was showcased as a feasible means out of the sanitation crisis; in this instance, the community participated in building latrines and sanitation coverage in Darsalam now stands at a fantastic 100%.

A cycling competition between Crisis Talks participants was also organised in Burkina Faso with the winners being awarded household latrines!

Simavi, a founding member of End Water Poverty, organised an eye-catching Crisis Talk in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. A six-metre high toilet was inflated in Dam Square, and a new report, ‘Roll Up Your Sleeves’, was launched detailing the Dutch’s chances for involvement in water and sanitation at international level.

Whilst in the UK, WaterAid supporters met their MPs, including Julian Huppert MP, Sheila Gilmore MP and Alison McGovern MP, to talk about the fundamental role water and sanitation provision plays in development and to encourage high level attendance at the HLM.

Crisis Talks were also held in Bangladesh, India, Tanzania, Mali, and Sierra Leone.

Interested in organising a Crisis Talk? It's not too late to get involved! Crisis Talks can be held anytime from now until the SWA High-Level Meeting in April 2012. Please email fleuranderson@endwaterpoverty.org for more information or visit our website.

Live updates from the EWP and FAN international planning meeting

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 09:28:00 +0000

Journée mondiale des toilettes : Le temps d’écouter les communautés !

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 12:16:00 +0000

Inna Guenda Segueda, Communications Officer, WaterAid Burkina Faso a écrit ce blog au sujet des Crisis Talks au Burkina Faso.

« L’accès aux latrines et à l’eau potable est une préoccupation quotidienne surtout pour nous les femmes. C’est vrai que des efforts sont faits mais cela demeure insatisfaisant. Mais même si le maire seul ne peut pas tout faire, il peut trouver encore des partenaires qui interviendront pour nous faciliter la tache. Qu’est ce que monsieur le maire entend faire pour changer la situation d’ici à 2015 ? » Ainsi s’exprimait Ouédraogo Lizéta, une femme de la commune de Kirsi qui n’a pas voulu rater l’occasion à elle offerte de s’exprimer devant le maire de sa commune sur l’accès à l’eau potable et l’assainissement.

A plusieurs centaine de Km de Kirsi les réalités sont les mêmes. Assétou BARRY/ABA, représentante le village de Lao Peulh situé dans la zone périphérique d’Ouagadougou, témoigne qu’aucune des 31 concessions que compte son village de 347 habitants ne dispose de latrines. Les femmes en couche sont obligées de déféquer dans des sachets plastiques avant de les jeter dans la nature car la tradition leur interdit de déféquer dans la nature. Elle dit ne pas être fiers de leur comportement mais ils n’ont pas de choix. « Quand nous allons à la recherche de l’eau au forage nous mettons du temps. Mon mari croyait que je me promenais pour ne pas faire la cuisine. Il m’a battue et c’est mon beau père qui m’a secourue. Ce dernier a demandé alors à mon mari d’aller passer une journée au forage et quand il l’a fait j’ai retrouvé la paix. »

Poser des actions concrètes

Ces témoignages ont été entendus respectivement lors des commémorations de la journée mondiale des toilettes le 19 Novembre à Kirsi et le 24 Novembre à Saaba au Burkina Faso. Pour l’occasion, WaterAid et ses partenaires de mise en œuvre Sahel Solidarité, SOS Sahel International et Association les Mains Unis du Sahel ont opté pour une initiative dénommée «Écoutons les communautés s’exprimer sur la crise de l’eau et de l’assainissement ».

Cette activité voulait rompre avec les cérémonies habituelles en donnant la parole aux communautés touchées par la crise de l’eau et de l’assainissement de s’exprimer. Dans les deux communes, femmes, hommes et enfants sont sortis profiter de la parole qui leur était donnée en présence de divers acteurs, des autorités provinciales et nationales, des journalistes, des représentants de la société civile, des hommes de culture, des élus locaux et des membres de communautés.

A Saaba, sur sollicitation du Réseau d’Information et de Communication pour l’Hygiène, l’Eau Potable et l’Assainissement (RICHE) les différents groupes représentés ont pris chacun l’engagement de conduire une action spécifique pour l’amélioration de l’accès à l’eau et à l’assainissement. Ainsi, le parrain de la cérémonie de commémoration de Saaba, M. Simon Pierre GOUEM, Directeur Général de la compagnie d’assurance GA vie s’engage à appuyer tous les projets qui lui seront soumis par WaterAid en faveur de l’accès aux services d’eau potable et l’assainissement. Il avoue avoir été très ému par les témoignages, lui qui participe pour la première fois à une activité de telle envergure sur l’eau et l’assainissement : « J’ai été sensibilisé à la question » dit-il.

Les journalistes ont quant à eux, promis de suivre les engagements pris par les acteurs. « Nous voulons des actes concrets que nous allons évaluer à la célébration de la journée mondiale des toilettes de 2012 » se justifie le Coordonnateur du RICHE, Dieudonné Soubeaga.

Dans la commune de Kirsi, des actes concrets ont été posés. Deux femmes vont bénéficier de l’appui de WaterAid pour la construction de latrine dans leur ménage. Elles ont été les grands vainqueurs de la course cycliste intitulée « Les femmes de Kirsi courent pour les latrines » organisée à l’occasion de la journée mondiale des toilettes. Cette activité symbolique visait à rappeler que l’accès à l’assainissement est un droit à revendiquer comme tout autre et témoigne de l’importance des toilettes dans la vie des femmes de Kirsi en particulier. Dix-neuf femmes ont pris part à cette course longue de douze Km. Toutes les participantes ont été récompensées du savon.

Malgré le tableau peu reluisant peint lors des témoignages des communautés, un espoir existe. C’est le message que la communauté de Darsalam est venue porter à leurs communes sœurs. Dans ce village situé en zone périphérique d’Ouagadougou il est interdit de déféquer à l’air libre grâce au déclenchement de l’approche Assainissement Total Porté par les communautés. Il y a donc de l’espoir et certaines solutions sont à porter des mains des communautés.

40 Walks for Water and Sanitation are already planned!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 09:54:00 +0000

Alexandra Chitty is an intern at End Water Poverty. Here, she writes about the campaign activities End Water Poverty's partners and members will be undertaking around World Water Day 2012.

We are really excited that 45,000 people have already signed up to Walk for Water and Sanitation around World Water Day next year.

The walks will take place around World Water Day, 22 March, and so far 40 organisations across the globe have started planning their walks! Walks for Water and Sanitation will be taking place in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Togo, Kenya, Nigeria, Australia, Norway, Moldova, the USA, the UK, and many more locations!

Liberia CSO WASH Working Group walking for water and sanitation in Liberia, 2011

Organisations such as A Better Community for All, Waterwheel, Khairpur Rural Development Organization, ONG Jeunes Volontaires pour l'Environnement, Udgam Charitable Trust, Knowledge Discovery, Aid Organization, SEDS, Sustainable Sanitation Design and Better Education for All Foundation are all planning Walks for Water and Sanitation in March 2012. They have many motivations for walking including:
· Ensuring clean water and adequate sanitation for all throughout the world
· Promoting and delivering hygiene education nationally
· Wanting water for to become a basic right in national constitutions
· Encouraging ministers to establish a policy on safe drinking water

Most importantly they are all walking to demand more than promises – they want to see real, tangible action being taken by governments to end the water and sanitation crisis.

A key moment in achieving this is the second Sanitation and Water for All High Level Meeting taking place in April 2012. This is where the Finance ministers from the Global North and South will meet to act upon the water and sanitation crisis. By acting together, in our thousands, all over the world, we can make governments take the actions needed to ensure clean water and sanitation for all.

We need you to get involved and make a stand! Visit: http://www.worldwalksforwater.org/eng to find out more and to sign up to take part.

Crisis Talks on World Toilet Day: six metre high toilet in the Netherlands!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 17:26:00 +0000

Jessica Bekker works for Simavi in the Netherlands, a founding member of the End Water Poverty campaign. Here, she shares news of the Crisis Talk that took place on World Toilet Day in Amsterdam

On World Toilet Day, Saturday November 19 2011, Simavi organized a Crisis Talk on the Dam Square in the centre of Amsterdam. By putting a giant six-metre high toilet (the equivalent of 2 floors) on the Dam, the public health organization drew attention to the fact that 2.6 billion people still do not have access to a toilet, and launched a report about the Dutch chances for involvement in water and sanitation at international level. A spectacular singing act performed by “Toilet Ladies” added some more fun to the event!

Report
During this event Simavi presented the report 'Roll up your sleeves' to the media. The report shows that, in 2014, the Dutch government invest only 63 million Euro into water, sanitation and hygiene compared to the 81 million Euro that will be invested during 2012. The Dutch Lower House are meeting to discuss this foreign development budget in the next week and this report urges them to invest more money in water and sanitation. It emphasises the importance of the second Sanitation and Water for All High Level Meeting taking place in April 2012. This is where the Finance ministers from developing countries and the ministers of Development Cooperation from the donor countries meet to really get down to business. It is important that the Dutch government rolls up its sleeves and once more shows leadership to make this meeting successful.

'Roll up your sleeves' features Dr Catherine Mwango from ANEW and Doreen Wandera from UWASNET, both End Water Poverty member networks!

Signal
With this Crisis Talk, Simavi gave a powerful signal to politicians to show them they need to act in order to clean up the pressing shortage of toilets across the world. Each day over 4,000 children under the age of five die due to preventable water-related illnesses. Clean toilets will prevent infectious diseases like cholera and diarrhoea from spreading any further

http://www.simavi.nl/simavi/indexuk.do

The huge toilet in Dam Square!

Crisis Talks with MPs across the UK!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 13:32:00 +0000

Alexandra Chitty is an intern at End Water Poverty. Here, she writes about the Crisis Talks that have been taking place in the UK over the past week.

In the run up to World Toilet Day, 19 November 2011, campaigners across the UK have been engaging in Crisis Talks with MPs about the water and sanitation crisis which is killing 4,000 children under the age of 5 every day.

WaterAid supporters have been meeting their MPs to talk about the fundamental role water and sanitation provision plays in development. And they have been emphasising the importance of the Sanitation and Water for All High Level Meeting (HLM), an international meeting to be held in Washington DC on April 20th 2012 when world leaders from the Global North and South will meet to act upon the water and sanitation crisis.

WaterAid supporters have spoken with Cambridge MP Julian Huppert, Edinburgh East MP Sheila Gilmore and Wirral South MP Alison McGovern amongst others – a total of 20 Crisis Talks have already taken place across the UK!

Crisis Talks are addressing the detrimental impact that lack of water and sanitation can have on the wider social environment of developing countries - health, education and nutrition are all adversely affected, and women and girls are particularly vulnerable. They frequently risk being sexually assaulted when walking to fields to defecate or when using latrines in remote locations, and they are often required to walk long distances in rural areas to collect water which prevents girls from attending school and women from engaging in economic activities.

WaterAid supporters met Jonathan Evans, MP for Cardiff North

It is time to stop this crisis and that is why WaterAid supporters have been calling on MPs to encourage them to prioritise WASH and to ensure ministerial representation at the High-Level Meeting. It is vital that this unique opportunity for real political and financial change is harnessed and that Finance and Development Ministers commit to ensuring that enough resources are available to be spent where they are needed most and in the way that is most effective.

New video: What are Crisis Talks?

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 12:41:00 +0000

Fleur Anderson, International Campaign Coordinator at End Water Poverty talks about the Crisis Talks happening in twenty countries across the globe on and around World Toilet Day!

Crisis Talk in Nepal today!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 08:56:00 +0000

Tomorrow is World Toilet Day and Crisis Talks will be taking place across the globe this weekend as communities speak out urgently on the water and sanitation crisis. And we're excited to report that one of the first of these Crisis Talks has just taken place in Nepal!

Sanitary workers reported on the sanitation crisis to their Minister of Local Development and State Minister of Finance. They displayed a photo exhibition of public toilets to highlight the need to improve sanitation and a documentary was shown on the state of toilets in urban areas. And we already have some fantastic photos of these events!

There will be Crisis Talks in 16 further countries during the weekend so good luck to everyone organising events!

Crisis Talks in Liberia this Saturday!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 12:18:00 +0000

Prince D. Kreplah is the Chairman of the Liberia CSOs WASH working group, a joint advocacy initiative of six local Liberian NGOs and faith based organisations. Mr. Kreplah talks about the Crisis Talks being organized by these organisations in seven counties on and around World Toilet Day!

Liberia witnessed widespread civil war from 1989-2003. The war displaced over two million people and damaged infrastructure and basic social services such as water, sanitation and hygiene. The Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS) estimates that ‘only 25 percent of Liberians have access to safe drinking water and just 14 percent have access to human waste collection and disposal facilities.’ Coverage varies from county to county for water from 7% to 66%, and for sanitation from 9% to 25%. In rural areas, access is even lower, particularly in the South East of the country where four of six counties have the lowest levels of access to safe drinking water in the country.

It is against this background that six Liberian civil society networks organisations seek to strengthen their collaboration and potential through the creation of a joint advocacy network—the Liberian CSOs WaSH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) Working Group. This network raises awareness, influences policy change and mobilises action.

On and around World Toilet Day, 19 November 19 2011, the members of the Liberia CSOs WASH Working Group will organize Crisis Talks in seven of the country’s fifteen counties including Bong, Bomi, Gbarpolu, Lofa, Nimba, Montserrado, and Margibi.

Each of these Crisis Talks will involve five people affected by the water and sanitation crisis speaking to explain how lack of access to WASH is impacting people’s health and economic and social well-being. Overall, more than 700 political leaders, policy makers, civil society executives, youth leaders, chiefs, women, elders and slum community dwellers will attend the five crisis talks and sixty victims and expert witnesses will testify before representatives from the media, civil society and public service.

A brochure containing recommendations on the way forward from those affected and experts will then be circulated to decision makers and partners. There will also be a video documentary made at each Crisis Talk voicing the opinions of slum communities affected by the crisis including school children, people with disabilities, women and hard to reach community dwellers.

Members of the Working Group will then meet with the delegation of decision makers who will be attending the Sanitation and Water for All High Level Meeting in April 2012. They will share the voices of those affected by the water and sanitation crisis and the opinions of civil society and share their expectations about how the delegation should prepare for and participate in the meeting.

Crisis Talks update!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 16:23:00 +0000

Fleur Anderson, International Coordinator of End Water Poverty, shares the latest news on Crisis Talks taking place across the globe this weekend

Ordinary people speak out!

End Water Poverty member organizations will be holding public hearings in local communities, and with government ministers, where ordinary people can speak out about the effect of the sanitation crisis on their lives.

What’s the Crisis?

Very painful stomach cramps, missing school from illness, deaths from diarrhoea, continual lack of energy, and very undermining and undignified living conditions are some of the day-to-day realities caused by the global sanitation crisis. Despite a huge need for action – nearly one in three people globally do not have a clean place to go to the toilet – sanitation is not high on the political agenda. At current rates of progress, the Millennium Development Goals on sanitation won’t be met for over 200 years.

‘Crisis Talks’ are taking place in 16 countries this weekend using the the occasion of World Toilet Day to bring attention to the sanitation crisis, and demand that governments take a lead on solving this crisis. In Asia a shocking two-thirds of people do not have basic sanitation, and in Africa, diarrhoea is the biggest killer of children.

Action in 16 countries!

In Mali, four days of events are being held in the lead up to World Toilet Day whilst in the UK constituents are already holding personal meetings with their MPs. In Liberia, public hearings are taking place in three counties and in Malawi, Talks are being held in the heart of the slums. In DRC, public events are being held in Kinshasa and Bukavu and in Nepal, there are campaigns for public toilets and to improve the conditions of sanitary workers. Further ‘Crisis Talks’ are being held in Holland, Uganda, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Nigeria, Zambia, Burkina Faso, Togo, Cameroon, Burundi, and Bangladesh. Take a look at our map for more information!

Global Fast Track

Crisis Talks are being held starting from World Toilet Day and leading up to a major international meeting on Water and Sanitation to be held by Finance and Development Ministers in Washington DC on April 20^th 2012 – the Sanitation and Water for All High Level Meeting.

This Meeting is the best opportunity yet to raise global political attention, agree to focus budget on the communities that need it most, and move sanitation into the global fast-track.

So good luck to all those organizing events, and if you would like to organize one in your country please get in touch: fleuranderson@endwaterpoverty.org

New template press release for your Crisis Talk!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 15:00:00 +0000

With less than a week to go until World Toilet Day, we're incredibly excited about the Crisis Talks that will be taking place across the globe!

Crisis Talks are happening in almost 20 countries, from Cameroon to Bangladesh, Nigeria, Togo and the Netherlands. In Malawi, a Crisis Talk hearing is taking place in Ndirande township to ensure decision makers are brought directly to the crisis and ommunities affected by a lack of clean water and safe sanitation are presenting their demands through drama, recitals, dances and quizzes! In Liberia, there will be public hearings held in Monrovia, Montserrado, Nimba and Grand Bassa to highlight the extent of the crisis whilst plenary discussions and debates are planned in Mali and Burundi.

View Crisis Talks in a larger map

If you are organising a Crisis Talk, our new template press release will help you to get in touch with journalists, invite them to your event and ask them to report about the water and sanitation crisis. Please add information about the situation in your country and about the Crisis Talk you have planned!

Le modèle de communiqué de presse pour votre Crisis Talk est désormais disponible en français!

And remember - it's not too late to organise a Crisis Talk! These events can happen anytime from now until the Sanitation and Water for All High-Level Meeting on 20 April 2012! Get in touch with Fleur on fleuranderson@endwaterpoverty.org if you are interested in taking part.

Crisis Talk plans in Malawi!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 15:43:00 +0000

With Crisis Talks kicking off on World Toilet Day next Saturday 19 November, it's exciting to hear about the great events being planned across the globe!

Here, George from New Restoration Plan in Malawi talks about their plans to hold a Crisis Talk in a slum, bringing politicians and journalists directly to the issue being discussed:

There are Crisis Talks planned from Liberia to London, Togo to Pakistan, Nigeria to the Netherlands and more! Take a look at our map to find out more about what's happening:

View Crisis Talks in a larger map

Walking for water in Uganda

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 23:53:00 +0000

Looking for some inspiration for planning your event for the World Walks for Water and Sanitation 2012?

Here's a short clip of Doreen from UWASNET telling us about the World Walks for Water 2011 in Uganda!

Join our World Walks for Water and Sanitation campaign!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 10:18:00 +0000

Today is a very exciting day for us as we launch our new campaign around World Water Day 2012 - the World Walks for Water and Sanitation! Join thousands of people across the globe who will be walking from 17 to 25 March 2012 to demand that their politicians take action to put an end to the water and sanitation crisis.

Earlier this year, over 350,000 people walked in 75 different countries during the World Walks for Water campaign. They made their voices heard ahead of the Fourth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries and this directly resulted in strong and ambitious water and sanitation targets being included in the Istanbul Programme of Action. And there were great national successes too! Following the campaign, Nepal’s sanitation budget was tripled and Germany took decisive action by agreeing to join the Sanitation and Water for All partnership.

World Walks for Water 2011 in Liberia

But there is still more to be done! And this year, we hope the World Walks for Water and Sanitation will mobilise even more people in even more countries and show governments across the world that we won't stand for women walking 40 billion hours per year carrying water weighing 18 kg which is still not even safe to drink.

This year, the timing of the World Walks for Water and Sanitation is hugely important. It comes almost exactly a month before world leaders gather in Washington at the second High-Level Meeting of the Sanitation and Water for All partnership to discuss what they are going to do to tackle the water and sanitation crisis. With this mass global campaign, we can show them that the world expects decisive action and will not stand for 4000 children dying each day simply because they don't have clean water and a toilet. It is really important that your Development or Finance Minister attends this meeting and comes ready to act – and you can take the opportunity of your ‘Walk’ to invite them to attend and demand that they commit to increasing provision to get water and sanitation to the world’s poorest communities.

So, we're asking as many people as possible to join together and walk! Whether you are part of an NGO, university, school or company, you can get involved by organising your own walk or joining one that is already taking place. Walks can be of any length and can take place anywhere! Have fun and get as much attention as you can by singing, dancing, dressing as taps and toilets or inviting celebrities along too. You can walk to your politicians' offices to deliver a petition or invitation to the High-Level Meeting, or ask them to go a step further and walk alongside you - how you do it is up to you but remember that it's about political action and making sure we apply pressure on the decision makers.

If you are interested in getting involved and organising a walk, take a look at our exciting new campaign toolkit for everything you need to get started. It's full of ideas and tips to help you make your walk a success! And once you have done that, why not register your walk on the website so that we can tell everyone about your event and encourage them to join you.

Together, we can make sure that the World Walks for Water and Sanitation shows decision makers around the globe that it's time to act.

New report: the 'World We Want'

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 11:06:00 +0000

Today is the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, a day officially recognized by the United Nations which aims to get the voices of poor and marginalised people around the world heard by decision makers.

To mark this date, Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP)’s new report ‘The World We Want’ will be launched by coalitions in 27 countries across the world. This report aims to take the messages of people affected by poverty, climate change, and social exclusion, to their leaders and to convince governments to take urgent action to end poverty and inequality.

Campaigners are coming together from 15-17 October to tell decision makers about the report through diverse actions, public mobilisation, and targeted advocacy. From concerts to letter writing campaigns and tree planting, people living in poverty worldwide will be ensuring their voices are heard.

The report showcases just some of the inspiring ways in which civil society has come together and taken action against poverty and inequality over the past year. This includes the work of End Water Poverty, which is highlighted in the report as a successful and growing movement of campaigners showing the real value of campaigning both nationally and internationally. The fantastic World’s Longest Toilet Queue and World Walks for Water events organized by our members and partners are given as examples of this success!

Walking for Water in Nepal

Alongside the report, civil society organizations all around the world are launching the 'Better Aid for The World We Want’ campaign which aims to mobilise public support for civil society asks towards the upcoming High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Busan, South Korea in November. The public are encouraged to sign a petition asking governments to ensure that citizens’ voices are heard in development and aid decisions. The signatures will be collected on campaign postcards as well as online at www.betteraid.org/campaign .

To find out more about GCAP’s work and to read the report, visit their website here.

End Water Poverty in Mumbai!

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 11:27:00 +0000

Jennifer Williams, from the International Secretariat, is at the WSSCC Global Forum on Sanitation and Hygiene in Mumbai to meet End Water Poverty partners and members, and to spread the word about the Crisis Talks and World Walks for Water and Sanitation 2012!

What a week! As a new staff member at the End Water Poverty secretariat, I have been incredibly excited to come to Mumbai to meet our members and partners, to liaise with experts in the water and sanitation sector and to join discussions about advocacy, communications and the importance of grassroots civil society voices in WASH advocacy.

Working on the advocacy stall here has been a great opportunity to meet many inspiring and engaged advocates and has made me hugely excited about my role with the End Water Poverty coalition. I’ve been taking the opportunity to tell a variety of people and organisations visiting the stall about the Crisis Talks taking place around World Toilet Day next month. At these events, people affected by poor water and sanitation will give testimonies on life without these basic services and make recommendations on the way forward to attending politicians, media and civil society leaders. I have been hearing about the unique and exciting Crisis Talks already being planned – including one being held in the slums in Malawi, bringing politicians and decision makers directly to the issue being discussed!

Highlights from the conference include a breakout session entitled ‘How to win hearts and minds through WASH advocacy’ where we discussed the ingredients that make campaigning and lobbying successful, from knowing the political scene to communicating the messages in an eye-catching and engaging way. I presented about the Crisis Talks and the World Walks for Water and Sanitation – and was particularly delighted when almost every person in the room raised their hand to say they would like to take part in 2012!

A side-event about the Sanitation and Water for All partnership also proved interesting – explaining what the SWA is, what it’s trying to achieve and updating us on preparations for the 2012 High-Level Meeting. Don’t worry if you couldn’t make it though as our new SWA briefing sheets give you all the latest news and updates!

A visit to Dharavi, one of the largest slums in Asia, highlighted the public health issues that many residents here face. Our guide informed us as we passed a small block of ten toilets that it serves over 1,700 people –and many of the statistics are much worse. With such poor facilities, adults and children are forced to urinate and defecate in the local river resulting in the spreading of disease. The shortage of clean drinking water for the estimated 1.4 billion residents exacerbates the problem further and it is clear that much more needs to be done to achieve the goal of sanitation and water for all.

Dharavi

I leave Mumbai tomorrow morning feeling positive and excited about the difference the End Water Poverty coalition can make after meeting our engaged and inspiring members and partners. And I also leave feeling determined to work together to push Development and Finance Ministers from both the Global North and South to attend the High-Level Meeting in April 2012 and take action to prevent people in slums like Dharavi being denied a basic human right – clean water and a safe toilet.

Join up, Scale up, Save lives

noreply@blogger.com (Jen Williams) — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 07:50:00 +0000

Hope Randall works for PATH, one of the six organisations, including End Water Poverty, who have co-authored a new report which shows how linking nutrition, health, education and water and sanitation delivers better results for the world's poorest communities. Her work focuses on their defeatDD initiative

Call it what you will: joining up or combining interventions, integration or disaggregation. Whatever you call it, it is essential to achieving the Millennium Development Goals and to alleviating poverty and disease. We can’t agree more with Antonio Monteiro, former President of Cape Verde and recently appointed Nutrition Advocate for West Africa, that integration makes good common and fiscal sense , both of which are rightly held in high esteem by citizens who hold their governments accountable for effective programming. Most importantly, it saves lives.

Despite the fact that this concept seemed obvious to most of us, we – and our partners – noticed a troublesome gap in the way we communicated this message: we lacked a compilation of practical examples to serve as evidence that integration is successful. Even more practically, we lacked a resource that answered the question, “What does integration look like in the field?” This gap came up repeatedly, and it was during some meetings last year with our partners across the pond that we were inspired to work together to try to fill the gap. Thus, the seeds were planted for what would become our new report, Join up, Scale up: How integration can defeat poverty and disease.

The report illustrates successful models of integration on both the interventions level and the government level. Just as disease and poverty solutions need to be “joined up” to realize the greatest impact, governments must work with civil society organizations and community leaders to “scale up” these successes. The recommendations in the report provide a road map for donors and policymakers to implement integrated programs.

One case study in the report features PATH’s diarrhoeal disease control program in Kenya. The pilot program integrated treatment interventions, like oral rehydration therapy (ORT) corners, with preventive measures, like hygiene education and safe drinking water. The innovative approach proved successful and influenced Kenya’s Ministry of Health to launch official policy guidelines on the prevention and treatment of diarrheal disease. Work is now being done on the local level to continue to raise awareness of the integration approach. Florence Weke-sa, deputy mayor of Kimilili in Western Kenya, is thrilled with the program’s work there, saying, “Do not do this work in silence. Work with local leaders. Shout about it. Make a loud noise.”

These children at the ORT corner at Kakamega Hospital in Kenya will be dismissed in a matter of hours.

In just a few weeks, we’re going to make a loud noise at the UNC Water and Health Conference. Alfred Ochola, Primary health coordinator for PATH’s diarrheal disease control program in Kenya’s Western Province, will bring his on-the-ground perspective of the field work to the workshop, “Collaborating for WaSH and Health: Case Studies for Cost-Effective and Integrated Promotion.” We hope to see you there, but if you can’t make it, you can follow us at @defeatDD for the latest updates from the event.

We’re grateful for the opportunity to join voices with our great partners on this project: Action Against Hunger, Action for Global Health, End Water Poverty, Tearfund, and WaterAid. And we look forward to working with you, too, to send the message to donors and governments: join up, scale up, and save lives!

Read the report here.