Drinking water, sanitation and hygiene in schools : global baseline report 2018

Abstract

In 1990 the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) established the Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (JMP). Since then, the JMP has been instrumental in establishing global norms to benchmark and compare progress in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) across countries. WHO and UNICEF, through the JMP, were previously responsible for tracking progress towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and are now responsible for monitoring global progress towards the WASH-related Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets. The global effort to achieve sanitation and water for all by 2030 is extending beyond the household to include institutional settings, such as schools, healthcare facilities and workplaces. This has been reinforced by global education for all8 strategies highlighting how WASH in schools improves access to education and learning outcomes, particularly for girls, by providing a safe, inclusive and equitable learning environment for all. This report is the first comprehensive global assessment of WASH in schools and establishes a baseline for the SDG period. Transforming our world: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was agreed by all 193 Member States of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, which resolved to end poverty in all its forms, take bold and transformative steps to shift the world onto a sustainable and resilient path, and ensure that no one will be left behind. The 2030 Agenda established 17 SDGs and 169 global targets addressing the social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable development in an integrated manner. It seeks to realize the human rights of all, and achieve gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls. This ambitious universal agenda is intended to be implemented by all countries and all stakeholders, working in partnership. SDG6 aims to ‘ensure available and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all’ and includes targets for universal access to drinking water, sanitation and hygiene for all by 2030 (6.1 and 6.2). The term ‘universal’ implies all settings, including households, schools, healthcare facilities, workplaces and public places, and ‘for all’ implies services that are suitable for men, women, girls and boys of all ages, including people living with disabilities. SDG4 aims to ‘ensure inclusive and quality education for all and promote lifelong learning’ and includes targets for access to pre-primary, primary and secondary education, improved learning outcomes and the elimination of inequalities at all levels of education (4.1–4.7). Target 4.a addresses the means of implementation and aims to build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender sensitive and provide safe, non-violent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all, including, among other things, providing access to basic drinking water, sanitation and hygiene services in all schools.