DWS SDG 6 Working Group

DWS SDG 6 Working Group A s our local custodian of water resources, the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) is the leading agent for SDG 6. All the planning, collecting of data and reporting completed for SDG 6 is the responsibility of the Minister of Water and Sanitation, Mr Senzo Mchunu. The UN is excited by South Africa’s SDG 6 Reporting is coordinated through Stats SA as the custodian of statistical organisational structure, which increases collaboration information of our country. with other government departments and agencies SDG 6 contains eight targets, all responsible for other SDGs. It is one of the best worldwide and has been made available as an example focusing directly on water services (including sanitation) and water resource management. for other countries to emulate. “The DWS has developed the SDG 6 Working Group to coordinate activities related to the eight targets of SDG 6,

SDG 6 is divided into eight targets that reflect the water cycle:

6.1: Drinking water – achieve universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all 6.2: Sanitation hygiene – achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations 6.3: Wastewater and water quality – improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimising release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally 6.4: Water use and scarcity – substantially increase water-use efficiency across all sectors and ensure sustainable withdrawals and supply of freshwater to address water scarcity and substantially reduce the number of people suffering from water scarcity 6.5: Water management – implement integrated water resources management at all levels, including through transboundary cooperation as appropriate 6.6: Ecosystems – protect and restore water-related ecosystems, including mountains, forests, wetlands, rivers, aquifers and lakes

The targets have to be implemented through:

6a: International cooperation – expand international cooperation and capacity-building support 6b: Community participation – support and strengthen the participation of local communities in improving water and sanitation management SDG 6 has 11 indicators (black) that will be used to measure the progress made on each target. In addition to the 11 targets, South Africa has proposed additional targets (in blue) 6.1.1 Proportion of population using safely managed drinking water services

6.2.1 Proportion of population using safely managed sanitation services, including a hand-washing facility with soap and water

6.3.1 Proportion of wastewater safely treated 6.3.1 (DWS) Proportion of water containing waste lawfully discharged 6.3.2 Proportion of bodies of water with good ambient water quality 6.3.2 (DWS) Proportion of bodies of water complying to water quality objectives

6.4.1 Change in water-use efficiency over time 6.4.2 Level of water stress: freshwater withdrawal as a proportion of available freshwater resources

6.5.1 Degree of integrated water resources management implementation (0-100) 6.5.2 Proportion of transboundary basin area with an operational arrangement for water cooperation 6.6.1 Change in the extent of water-related ecosystems over time 6.6.1.1 (DWS) Change in the spatial extent of water-related ecosystems over time, including wetlands, reservoirs, lakes and estuaries as a percentage of total land area 6.6.1.2 (DWS) Number of lakes and dams affected by high trophic and turbidity states 6.6.1.3 (DWS) Change in the national discharge of rivers and estuaries over time 6.6.1.4 (DWS) Change in groundwater levels over time 6.6.1.5 (DWS) Change in the ecological condition of rivers, estuaries, lakes and wetlands

6.a.1. Amount of water- and sanitation-related official development assistance that is part of a government-coordinated spending plan 6.b.1 Proportion of local administrative units with established and operational policies and procedures for participation of local communities in water and sanitation management

and the inclusion of the other 16 SDGs. It comprises 13 Task Teams (one for each target and five cross-cutting). This will improve the implementation of SDG 6, as well as offer support with the other 16 goals that have links to SDG 6,” explains Mark Bannister, chief engineer and SDG 6 coordinator at the DWS.

Key objectives

The Task Team’s key objectives are as follows: • Interrogate and, where necessary, further develop or localise methodologies for reporting on the SDGs. • Collect data and report on trends towards achieving the SDGs. • Provide inputs to country reports and other SDG reports by researchers. • Monitor the current status and quantify the target gaps towards achieving the 2030 goal. • Identify potential interventions/ tangible projects for the sector to implement in order to close gaps. • Ensure sector alignment between the National Water and

Sanitation Master Plan (NW&SMP) and SDG 6. • Support water and sanitation needs of the other 16 SDGs. According to Bannister, members of the Water and Sanitation Leadership Group (WSSLG) crosscutting Task Team (comprising broad representatives from the sector) should preach the key messages and mobilise others within their area of expertise to deliver projects on the ground aligned with the NW&SMP and the SDG 6 programme. “The WSSLG influences key sector role players to align themselves with the key instruments for change such as the NW&SMP. The themes in the NW&SMP align themselves to the SDG 6 targets accordingly.”

The cross-cutting SDG 6 Interlinkage Task Team has developed a tool to gather the water and sanitation needs of each of the other 16 SDGs, identify the synergy and tradeoffs between them, and translate these needs into projects that influence positive change through the NW&SMP. “When people ask me, 'Are we going to meet SDG 6 by 2030?’ I always say, ‘Yes, of course we are,’ but we all need to play our part. This is a ‘sector programme’ not a ‘DWS programme’. We either win together or lose together, and it is very much the department’s intention to win. While progress is not as quick as we need it to be, as a sector, we must prioritise our actions, accelerate the process, and align ourselves with SDG 6 and the NW&SMP – we still have eight years to achieve this goal, and it’s up to all of us whether we achieve it or not,” says Bannister.

ABOVE Mark Bannister, chief engineer and SDG 6 coordinator at the Department of Water and Sanitation