3 July 2014: The 7th meeting of the Task Force on Target Setting and Reporting and a regional workshop on linkages with other existing monitoring and reporting mechanisms related to water and health took place under the Protocol on Water and Health of the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (Water Convention).

The workshop took place on 3 July, and the Task Force convened on 4 July, both in Geneva, Switzerland. The workshop addressed, inter alia: establishment of linkages between the reporting mechanism under the Protocol on Water and Health and other existing regional and global monitoring programmes, such as the World Health Organization (WHO)/UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP), the UN-Water Global Analysis and Assessment of Sanitation and Drinking-Water (GLAAS) and the European Environment and Health Information System (ENHIS); possible ways to link target setting and reporting under the Protocol with existing national monitoring and information systems; and proposed post-2015 development goals and indicators on water and sanitation and possible ways to integrate these into national target setting processes.

The Task Force reviewed: general progress in setting targets and target dates; challenges faced by parties; and the possible need for updating the guidelines on the setting of targets, evaluation of progress and reporting and the guidelines and templates for summary reports. The meeting also discussed linkages with other monitoring and reporting mechanisms, the role of the Atlas on Water and Health in support to reporting under the Protocol, public participation in target setting and reporting, and implementation of the programme of work of the Task Force for 2014-2016. [UNECE Workshop Page] [UNECE Task Force Page]