November 2013: The UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe (WHO-Europe) have published ‘The Equitable Access Score-Card: Supporting Policy Processes to Achieve the Human Right to Water and Sanitation.’ The score-card builds on the publication titled ‘No One Left Behind: Good Practices to Ensure Equitable Access to Water and Sanitation’ by providing a tool to help governments and stakeholders assess levels of access to water and sanitation.

The score-card aims to help those involved: establish a baseline measure of the equity of access to water and sanitation; identify related priorities; discuss further actions to be taken; and evaluate progress through a process of self-assessment. The report includes chapters on: equitable access to water and sanitation; how to use the score-card; country experiences in using the score-card; and the score-card.

The score-card provides a framework for assessment of: governance frameworks to deliver equitable access to safe drinking water and sanitation; geographical disparities; access for vulnerable and marginalized groups; and water and sanitation affordability.

The report was published in advance of the Third Meeting of the Parties (MOP 3) to the Protocol on Water and Health to the UNECE Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (Water Convention), which took place from 25-27 November 2013, in Oslo, Norway. [Publication: The Equitable Access Score-Card: Supporting Policy Processes to Achieve the Human Right to Water and Sanitation] [IISD RS Story on the Publication ‘No One Left Behind’]