The 32nd edition of the Coalition of NGOs in Water and Sanitation (CONIWAS) conference has commenced in the Ashanti region.

The five-day event will focus on WASH and emergency response for sustainable growth under the theme: ‘‘Repositioning the WASH Sector for Emergency Response and Sustainable Development.”

The importance of hand washing, hygiene and sanitation gained prominence after the first case of the Covid-19 pandemic, which poses a major threat to service provision, was recorded. 

According to the 2021 Joint Monitoring Platform (JMP) report, Ghana’s basic sanitation stood at 24% in 2020, compared to19% in 2015. While access to basic drinking water was 86% in 2020, up from 80% in 2015, hygiene is 42%, up from 41% in 2015.

But the differences are access between the rich and poor, men and women, boys, and girls, which are crucial to addressing development inequalities, and ensuring nobody is left behind. 

The devastation caused by Covid-19 has highlighted the growing importance of hand hygiene and frequent handwashing for preventing the spread of the disease.

A well-prepared emergency response means ensuring that systems, institutions, and resources are available to enable the WASH sector to mitigate the effects of any unforeseen situation including climate change.

This will ensure that the WASH sector becomes more responsive to disasters and pandemics.

It is against this background that MOLE XXXII conference will discuss and harness ideas, set the agenda and contribute to design policies to strengthen emergency preparedness in the WASH sector.

The conference will also provide information to participants on various WASH policies, advocate for the improvement of enabling framework for WASH.

It will also dialogue on investment requirements and modalities for WASH in emergencies, partnership and collaboration for effective emergency WASH responsive preparedness.

Management of water resources for equitable service delivery will be on the agenda.