On January 14, 2011 nearly 100 representatives from over 50 organizations came together to discuss one of the most pressing challenges in the delivery of safe water around the world: sustainability. Nearly half of all water projects are known to stop working earlier than expected, wasting billions of dollars in investment and leading to the loss of countless lives. Making programs more sustainable is the single most efficient way to increase access to water and sanitation.

The need for improving sustainability is clear, but how to make programs more sustainable remains elusive. The WASH Sustainability Forum was held to start finding solutions: how can sustainability be practically incorporated into WASH programming? A series of panels at the forum provided opportunities for experts and key stakeholders to share the donor and  implementer perspectives on sustainability as well as emerging opportunities for developing WASH business models. In addition to these panels, the development of a WASH Sustainability Charter was announced. This Charter will lay out a sector-wide set of voluntary guiding principles that endorsers can follow to achieve agreed-upon sustainability goals. Breakout sessions in the morning and afternoon helped to lay the foundation for this charter, and public comment will be solicited in the coming weeks to finalize the Charter.

Global Water Challenge is delighted to announce the release of the summary report from this influential event. This report provides a concise overview of each panel, presentation, and discussion session from the forum, allowing you to benefit from the lessons and experiences shared, and keep up to date on the evolving conversation on WASH sustainability.

The full report can be download here, or read online through the tool provided below. In addition, all presentations from the forum, as well as the video that was shown and an audio recording of the entire forum are available at sustainablewash.org