Financing the sector

Credit: WaterAid / Jim Holmes

"Information on the water sector must be made publicly available each year so that there is transparency about the money used in, and results achieved by, the water sector."

To reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of halving the proportion of people without access to safe water or sanitation by 2015 some US$30 billion needs to be spent annually.

However only US$14 billion is currently spent annually which is why WaterAid is lobbying to double financing from all sources.

Correcting the present under-investment in the sector cannot be justified unless the financial waste which goes on is also eliminated.

This waste results from money being spent in the wrong places, on unnecessarily expensive or unsustainable technologies, or being lost in overly complex and lengthy bureaucratic procedures of government or donors. Lack of transparency about budgets, spending and results also creates opportunities for corruption.

Therefore WaterAid not only lobbies for more aid but also for improvements in how and where it is spent.

On financing the sector WaterAid believes that:

• Overall spending on water and sanitation should double, but only with accompanying changes to cut out financial waste. Different countries need different levels of additional funding

• There should be coordination between major donors so that all money directed to water and sanitation is managed efficiently through the relevant national government processes

• Since at present not all of the resources allocated to the sector are spent, there must be increases in staff numbers and skills for organisations implementing water and sanitation programmes

• There should be equitable access to water and sanitation. This means programmes to expand services should be targeted on those without facilities, the world's poorest people

• Those providing the services must ensure that they use appropriate and affordable technologies to ensure they are sustainable and last long into the future

• Information on the water sector must be made publicly available each year so that there is transparency about the money used in, and results achieved by, the water sector

Read our reports on financing the sector