Hygiene, sanitation, and water: What needs to be done?

Summary Points

• As the last article in a series on water and sanitation, this paper considers what needs to be done to make significant progress towards ensuring universal access to hygiene, sanitation, and water.
• We first discuss the differences between these three subsectors and the possible reasons for poor rates of progress towards achieving universal access in recent years.
• Then, we consider the actors whose engagement is essential for the sector, including the poor households themselves who are significant investors, local and central government, donors, and international agencies.
• Finally, we discuss the potentially important role of the health sector in improving hygiene, sanitation, and water worldwide and propose a detailed Agenda for Action.