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NEWS - August, 2014

World Toilet Day: We Can't Wait While Women Get Assaulted Going to the Toilet

The 2014 World Toilet Day campaign will draw attention to dignity and equality issues, especially inspiring action to end open defecation and putting spotlight on how access to improved sanitation leads to a reduction in assault and violence on women.

1 billion people around the world practice open defecation and many women and girls get assaulted as they wait until it's dark to relieve themselves. World Toilet Day (19 November) was recently established as an official UN day observed around the world through various initiatives that draw attention to the global sanitation crisis. To raise awareness and inspire action, the 2014 campaign builds on initiatives such as 'end open defecation', 'sanitation drive', 'we can't wait' and 'the urgent run' and will feature a high-level event at the UN headquarters on 19 November

as well as the launch of the UN-Water Global Analysis and Assessment of Sanitation and Drinking-Water (GLAAS).

People around the world are encouraged to get involved in the campaign and help end the sanitation crisis by raising awareness and organising events and initiatives. A dedicated website will be launched soon, but in the meantime, get informed and join the conversation #wecantwait, #worldtoiletday, #opendefecation, send us an email or download this brochure.

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NEWS - August, 2014

United Nations Watercourses Convention Enters Into Force

Landmark global framework on fresh water to improve water security, conflict resolution and cooperation across borders.

The first global framework on fresh water and the world's only global framework for transboundary cooperation, endorsed by the General Assembly of the United Nations, has officially entered into force. Currently, there are 276 transboundary freshwater lake and river basins worldwide, but only 40% are governed by agreements. Where agreements exist, 80% involve only two countries, even though other states may also be part of the watercourse in question.

The Convention will standardize one set of criteria for which all countries with international river basins and transboundary waters abide, ensuring more practical management globally. These criteria include defining the subjects that countries should discuss on their shared waters, facilitating the process of transboundary cooperation and holding governments accountable to their own countries and regions. More information

NEWS - August, 2014

What Do You Do and How Can I Get Involved?

One of the major opportunities of the year to discover water related work and progress is to attend the World Water Week in Stockholm. A full week of discussions, exhibitions and events awaits the 2000 participants who come to Stockholm this year.

UN-Water, as one of the convening organizations, warmly invites you to events, seminars and the Pavilion to get the latest updates and find out ways to get involved. This year in the annual UN-Water Stakeholder Dialogue, representatives from Germany and other Member States, civil society, international organizations will discuss how to best capture the interlinkages between water and other sectors such as energy and agriculture.

At the World Water Day event, participants will get a chance to learn more about the theme of next World Water Day, get the latest update on how the international community perceives water's role in the post-2015 framework and find out ways to get involved in the 2015 campaign. Other events not to miss are featured here and do drop by the UN-Water Pavilion where 10 of the Members and Partners display their interesting work.

POST-2015 DEVELOPMENT AGENDA

The Intergovernmental Committee of Experts on Sustainable Development Financing has recently completed its report.

The report contains recommendations for an effective financing strategy to facilitate the mobilisation of resources and their effective use in achieving post-2015 sustainable development objectives.
The report is one of the inputs that will feed into the UN Secretary General's synthesis report, which is expected to form the building blocks of the post-2015 development agenda, alongside the Open Working Group's proposal for sustainable development goals (SDGs), the report of the President of the General Assembly (PGA) on the four structured technology dialogues, and the outcomes of the special events organized by the PGA over the course of the 68th GA session, among others. The intergovernmental negotiations to arrive at this agenda will commence in the fall, and are expected to culminate in the adoption of the post-2015 agenda at a concluding summit September 2015.

GA Stocktaking event on 11-12 September

In preparation for the negotiation phase of the post-2015 development agenda during the 69th session, the President of the General Assembly is convening on 11-12 September 2014 a High-Level Stocktaking Event to reflect upon the various post-2015 development-related processes which have occurred during the current session of the General Assembly.

This event aims to provide Member States and other stakeholders with an opportunity to identify possible inputs to the synthesis report of the Secretary-General, to the work of the 69th session of the General Assembly, and to the elaboration of the post-2015 development agenda itself. The concept note and the provisional programme can be found here.

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IN PICTURES

'Hello from the classroom': A feature by one of UN-Water's Partners - water.org - on school children in Bangalore, India, who have time to go to school thanks to safe water connections. Read more