15th MEETING OF THE WORKIGN GROUP ON WATER AND HEALTH
On 13-14 May, 2025, the 15th meeting of the Working Group on Water and Health was held at the Palace of Nations in Geneva. The event was jointly organized by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe UNECE) and the World Health Organization (WHO). Zulfiya Yarullina represented SIC ICWC at the meeting.
The primary objectives of the meeting were to review the implementation of the Protocol's program of work for 2023-2025, which was adopted at the sixth session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Protocol (Geneva, 16-18 November, 2022); to discuss the draft program of work for 2026-2028 and the resources required for its implementation; and to begin preparations for the seventh session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Protocol (Budapest, 5-7 November, 2025).
In line with the agenda, representatives from both Parties and non-Parties to the Protocol delivered presentations on their countries' progress toward accession to the Protocol on Water and Health.
Further, information was provided on recent processes and developments at the global and regional levels related to water and sanitation, including: 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; the United Nations 2026 Water Conference (to be co-hosted by Senegal and the United Arab Emirates (UAE, 2-4 December 2026)); the United Nations System-wide Strategy on Water Supply and Sanitation; the Budapest Declaration adopted at the seventh Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health and other relevant global and regional commitments in the field of environment and health. A discussion was held after presentations.
Additionally, the meeting addressed the preparation process for the draft Protocol program of work for 2026-2028, which is scheduled for adoption at the seventh session of the Meeting of the Parties. The presentation covered the overall scope of activities, their justification and the institutional framework. The development process included consultations, discussions within various intergovernmental bodies and interview with key experts conducted by consultants. Based on this input, the Presidium developed the draft program of work for 2026-2028 in consultation with leading Parties and countries, taking into account the broader developments in water and sanitation sector.
During the session focused on improving the governance for water and health through target setting, implementation of relevant measures, and reporting, the Uzbek delegation presented an update on the country's progress in implementing the Protocol's provisions, particularly in relation to target indicators.
At the meeting, Parties shared updates on their activities, including:
- Strengthening capacities for progress monitoring and reporting.
- Improving governance for water and health
- Prevention and reduction of water-related diseases
- Water, sanitation and hygiene in institutional settings and public places
- Safe management of water supply and sanitation systems
- Equitable access to water and sanitation, translating into practice the human rights to water and sanitation.
- Increasing resilience to climate change
- Raising awareness on the Protocol and facilitating accession
- Compliance procedures.
As part of a bilateral meeting between representatives of Uzbekistan, the Permanent Representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan in Switzerland, and UNECE specialists, discussions were held on the next steps for developing and harmonizing national targets under the Protocol.
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