The sixth Sustainable Development Goal in the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda focuses on the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all. This SDG could be the core of several other issues and goals related to sustainability, as universal access to water and basic sanitation would be an indicator of the end of hunger and poverty, the promotion of good health and well-being, and the protection of the environment, among others.
However, faced with challenges from climate change, overexploitation, and pollution, the challenges to achieving SDG 6 has proven to be quite formidable. The UN has stated that as of 2024, none of the SDG 6 targets are on track to be met by 2030. In 2022, over 2 billion people around the world had no access to safely managed drinking water, and over 3 billion lacked access to safely managed sanitation.
In the case of the Philippines, which ranks 92nd out of 166 countries in the SDG Index Rank according to the Sustainable Development Report 2024, it still faces major hurdles to clean water and sanitation for all.
According to the World Bank Group, in 2023, only 48 percent of the Philippine population received safely managed or piped water services, while approximately 63 percent had access to safely managed sanitation services or proper human waste collection, treatment, and disposal.
One solution being offered by government is the proposed creation of a Department of Water Resources which is set to act as the primary government entity responsible for the development and management of the country’s water resources. It will be responsible for determining the optimal allocation and use of water for domestic and municipal supply, sanitation, irrigation, hydropower, industry, navigation, flood management, and recreation, as well as planning and policy formation for water accessibility and improved sanitation services.
There is also the Philippine Water Supply and Sanitation Master Plan that the National Economic Development Authority released in 2021, which serves as a national action plan geared toward achieving universal access to safe and sustainable water supply and sanitation by 2030.
Even though it should be a basic right, access to safely managed drinking water and sanitation remains a problem for most poor Filipinos. Action plans, programs, and promises are aplenty but the most important indicator is the situation on the ground that as of now, still has a lot of room for improvement, just to fulfill a basic need.*
