Global Civil Society & the UN Sustainable Development Goals

Goal 6: Ensure access to water and sanitation for all

Clean Water & Sanitation


Access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene is the most basic human need for health and well-being. Billions of people will lack access to these basic services in 2030 unless progress quadruples. Demand for water is rising owing to rapid population growth, urbanization and increasing water needs from agriculture, industry, and energy sectors.

The demand for water has outpaced population growth, and half the world’s population is already experiencing severe water scarcity at least one month a year. Water scarcity is projected to increase with the rise of global temperatures as a result of climate change.

Investments in infrastructure and sanitation facilities; protection and restoration of water- related ecosystems; and hygiene education are among the steps necessary to ensure universal access to safe and affordable drinking water for all by 2030, and improving water-use efficiency is one key to reducing water stress.

There has been positive progress. Between 2015 and 2022, the proportion of the world’s population with access to safely managed drinking water increased from 69 per cent to 73 per cent.

Name Acronym Founded City HQ Country/Territory HQ Type I Type II

International Symposium on Analytical and Applied Pyrolysis

Pyro S c

International Symposium on Electrokinetic Remediation

EREM S c

International Symposium on Environmental Issues and Waste Management in Energy and Minerals Production

SWEMP S c

International Symposium on the Properties of Water

ISOPOW Cork Ireland E c

International Technical Meeting on Air Pollution Modelling and its Application

S c

International Telecommunication Union

ITU 1985 Geneva Switzerland B g

International Trade Union "Elektroprofsoyuz"

Electrounion 1991 Moscow Russia D t

International Trade Union Alliance of Public Utilities, Local Industry and Services Workers

Moscow Russia D t

International Tree Foundation

ITF 1924 Oxford UK G f

International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources

IUCN 1948 Gland Switzerland A y

International Union of Air Pollution Prevention and Environmental Protection Associations

IUAPPA 1964 Burgess Hill UK C y

International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences

IUAES 1948 Osaka Japan B

International Union of Property Owners

1923 Brussels Belgium C

International Utilities Revenue Protection Association

IURPA 1990 Orlando FL USA N

International Waste Working Group

IWWG 2002 Hamburg Germany E

International Water and Resource Economics Consortium

IWREC Riverside CA USA E v

International Water Association

IWA 1990 London UK C

International Water History Association

IWHA 2001 Canberra ACT Australia D

International Water Management Institute

IWMI 1984 Colombo Sri Lanka E j

International Water Mist Association

IWMA 1998 Hamburg Germany D

International Water Power Consortium

IWPC 1997 J gp

International Water Resources Association

IWRA 1971 Nanterre France B

International Water-Related Associations' Liaison Committee

IWALC 1994 Delhi India E y

International WaterCentre

IWC 2005 Nathan QLD Australia G

International Waterlily and Water Gardening Society

IWGS 1984 Greenville VA USA N

International Waterlogging and Salinity Research Institute

IWASRI 1986 Lahore Pakistan G j

International Women's Rights Project

IWRP 1998 G

International Wool Textile Organisation

IWTO 1929 Brussels Belgium C t

International Workshop on Railway Noise

IWRN 1976 S c

International Youth Council

IYC 2007 G

International Zeolite Association

IZA 1967 Caen France C v

International Zinc Association

IZA 1990 Brussels Belgium C yt

Internationale Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Wasserwerke im Rheineinzugsgebiet

IAWR 1970 Düsseldorf Germany D

Internationale Gesellschaft für Elektrosmog-Forschung

IGEF 1990 Santa Cruz de Tenerife Spain N

Internationale Kommission zum Schutz der Elbe

IKSE 1990 Magdeburg Germany E gy

Internationale Kommission zum Schutz der Oder gegen Verunreinigung

IKSOgV 1996 Wroclaw Poland E g

Internationaler Hilfsfonds

IH Brussels Belgium G f

Internationally Shared Aquifer Resources Management

ISARM 2000 Delft Netherlands E

INTERSOS

1992 Rome Italy G

IRC

1968 The Hague Netherlands E

Irrigation Association

IA Falls Church VA USA G

ISEA Foundation

New York NY USA G f

Islamic Aid

London UK N

Islamic Relief Worldwide

IRWW 1984 Birmingham UK F

Islands and Small States Institute, Malta

ISSI 1989 Msida Malta E j

ISSA

1923 Rosemont IL USA G

ITOPF Ltd

1968 London UK B

IWA Asia Pacific Region Grouping

IWA-ASPIRE London UK E

Japan International Volunteer Centre

JVC 1980 Tokyo Japan G

Jesuit Conference of European Provincials

JCEP Brussels Belgium F

Pages