Observations and lessons learnt from more than a decade of water safety planning in South-East Asia

Abstract

In many countries of the World Health Organization (‎WHO)‎ South-East Asia Region, drinking water is notused directly from the tap and faecal contamination of water sources is prevalent. As reflected in SustainableDevelopment Goal 6, access to safer drinking water is one of the most successful ways of preventingdisease. The WHO Water Safety Framework promotes the use of water safety plans (‎WSPs)‎, which arestructured tools that help identify and mitigate potential risks throughout a water-supply system, from thewater source to the point of use. WSPs not only help prevent outbreaks of acute and chronic waterbornediseases but also improve water-supply management and performance. During the past 12 years, throughthe direct and indirect work of a water quality partnership supported by the Australian Government, more than5000 urban and rural WSPs have been implemented in the region. An impact assessment based on pre- andpost-WSP surveys suggests that WSPs have improved system operations and management, infrastructureand performance; leveraged donor funds; increased stakeholder communication and collaboration; increasedtesting of water quality; and increased monitoring of consumer satisfaction. These achievements, andtheir sustainability, are being achieved through national legislation and regulatory frameworks for watersupply, including quality standards for drinking water; national training tools and extensive training of sectorprofessionals and creation of WSP experts; model WSPs; WSP auditing systems; and the institution of longterm training and support. More than a decade of water safety planning using the WSP approach has shownthat supplying safe drinking water at the tap throughout the WHO South-East Asia Region is a realistic goal