Sanitation and Water for All 2012 High Level Meeting

The Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) High Level Meetings bring together Ministers of Finance from developing countries, Ministers of Development Cooperation from donor countries and high-level representatives from development banks and other donor institutions to address the lack of priority given to sanitation and water as a development intervention, the poor targeting of aid in the sector, and the need for robust planning and institutions. 

The first High Level Meeting was held in 2010 and the next SWA High Level Meeting is on Friday 20 April 2012, before the weekend World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington DC.

Theme of the Meeting: Economic Gains from Sanitation and Water

The Meeting will focus on the significant gains that can be made from investing in sanitation and water and the costs of failing to invest. Research on the economics of sanitation and water indicates that no other single intervention brings greater public health returns; that the annual economic impact of poor sanitation is more than 5-6% of GDP in some countries; and that meeting the Millennium Development Target in sanitation would add 300 billion working days a year globally.

Attendees

Donors and developing countries, represented by the Minister of Finance, will attend the High Level Meeting.  Country invitees will include 2010 Meeting attendees; the current 34 SWA Partner countries; fragile, post-conflict, Least Developed or Low Income Countries that are  off-track to reach MDG targets in water or sanitation and which have not yet joined SWA; and selected politically-influential middle-income countries with large numbers of unserved people. Participation and significant political engagement from major donors will be among incentives for high level attendance.  UN and civil society representatives will also be present.

Expected Results

Participants in the High Level Meeting will table specific commitments to improve access to sanitation and drinking water. Commitments will include: increasing political prioritization, for instance increases in allocations for the sector and ensuring clear institutional responsibilities; improving targeting of funds, through focused policies and more funding for basic services for unserved people; improving evidence for better decision-making, such as improved sector monitoring and transparency; and strengthening of planning and human resources capacity, including better sector coordination, alignment with national planning and capacity building. 

Preparatory Process

The High Level Meeting preparatory processes for donors will focus on achieving top level participation and support, and furthering donor harmonization and alignment with country-led processes. Key issues include targeting of aid to basic services, support for development of evidence, and implementation of aid effectiveness principles.

Fifty to sixty developing countries will conduct High Level Meeting preparatory processes. The main elements of these preparatory processes will be multi-stakeholder consultations (with civil society as a key partner); review of existing commitments, resource allocation and institutional systems; development of action points; agreements with Ministers of Finance on their participation and statements, and drafting of specific commitments.   

The preparatory processes will be supported by the SWA Secretariat.

Read more about the the 2010 High Level Meeting here.

Latest news  about the 2012 High Level Meeting

Following the success of the Sanitation and Water for All 2010   High Level Meeting, UNICEF, on behalf of the SWA Partnership, plans to convene the second Global High Level Meeting on 20 April 2012, just prior to the World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington DC. 

The Concept Note I (Fr) for the 2012 SWA High Level Meeting outlines the multi-stakeholder preparations in developing countries as well as the preparatory processes for donors. The theme for the 2012 SWA High Level Meeting will be the economic gains of investing in water and sanitation and the costs of failing to invest.