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United Nations Human Rights Office of the High commissioner
Welcome to the UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Right to Water and Sanitation

Feature Stories

Stigma: an obstacle to universal access to water and sanitation

Stigma: an obstacle to universal access to water and sanitation

Stigma and the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation is the focus of a report of the UN expert on water and sanitation, Catarina de Albuquerque.

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The human right to safe drinking water and sanitation

The human right to safe drinking water and sanitation

The UN expert on water and sanitation calls for explicit references to the human right to water and sanitation in the outcome document from the Rio + 20 Conference.

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Rio+20 and human rights on social media: “The Future We Want”<

Rio+20 and human rights on social media

On the occasion of Rio+20, the UN Human Rights Office launches a social media campaign inviting people to speak up for human rights in “The Future We Want.”

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Wanted: Human Rights in Rio

Wanted: Human Rights in Rio

Civil society and UN experts call for an inclusive, just and equitable outcome at the forthcoming United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development

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Women and girls and their right to sanitation

Women and girls and their right to sanitation

About 2.6 billion people live without proper sanitation. Over 1.1 billion people have no sanitation facilities at all. This adversely affects women and girls.

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A landmark decision to make the right to water and sanitation legally binding

A landmark decision to make the right to water and sanitation legally binding

The UN Human Rights Council takes a decision which gives legal standing to the right to water and sanitation

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Girls have a right to know

Girls have a right to know

The international community is urged to redouble its resolve to strengthen equality in education and ensure equal access to school for both boys and girls.

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