A lack of global investment in water and sanitation has limited the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The United Nations MDGs, set in 2000, consist of eight goals for international development. Goal 7 is to ‘ensure environmental sustainability' and within that, target 7c is to ‘halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation'.

Good progress has already been made towards meeting this goal in some parts of the world but there is still a long way to go, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. Water and sanitation continue to suffer from severe underfunding. At a local level, the potential sources of finance are government, non-governmental organisations and others. You can try to make a difference firstly by understanding who these different potential sources of funds are and then working with your colleagues and others in the community to seek financial support.

Last modified: Tuesday, 15 July 2014, 5:24 PM