Lack of access to safe, adequate, and affordable water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services has a devastating effect on the health, dignity, and prosperity of billions of people across Asia and the Pacific. More than 55% of the region’s population will live in cities by 2030. With higher population densities and urban expansion, managing the vast amounts of human waste is becoming ever more challenging. 

Governments and development partners need to radically rethink their approach and investment priorities for sanitation. Sanitation services need to be sustained financially, environmentally, and technically. Moreover, policies, strategies, and investments must encompass the entire sanitation service chain, from source through conveyance to treatment and reuse or disposal.

Citywide inclusive sanitation (CWIS), a growing and evolving concept in the sanitation and development sectors aimed to address the sanitation challenge. The goal of CWIS is for everyone to have access to and benefits from adequate and sustainable sanitation services, and that all human waste is safely managed along the whole sanitation service chain. By providing access to everyone, maximum public health, social, environmental, and economic returns can be achieved.

In this opening webinar, the CWIS concept and its four principal elements were presented, supported by case studies and projects from cities and towns across Asia and the Pacific that demonstrate the benefits of CWIS, particularly compared to the business-as-usual approach. Experts also discussed how CWIS allows institutions to adapt to local conditions and utilize evidence-based interventions that can optimize service delivery and performance to better serve communities.

This learning event is part of the Online ADB Sanitation Dialogue 2021. 

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