Climate Resilient Water, Sanitation and Hygiene

NCA contributes to the equitable, inclusive and sustainable management of all resources related to safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) through this programme. This is essential to achieving several of the Sustainable Development Goals, as well as addressing the human right to water and sanitation.

Related Sustainable Development Goals

NCA´s response

The goal of NCA’s Climate Resilient Water, Sanitation and Hygiene programme is to ensure that people meet their basic WASH needs and live in dignity in healthy and resilient communities, through the provision of safe, equitable, inclusive, accountable,  and sustainable WASH services that can withstand and adapt to the impacts of climate change.

Within this programme, NCA and its partners aim to support communities and affected people to:

• participate in decision-making for and management of WASH services in synergy with relevant authorities.
• practice good and dignified hygiene measures to protect against public and personal health risks.
• access safe, inclusive, sustainable, and equitable basic sanitation facilities and services, appropriate to their context.
• access safe, inclusive, sustainable, and affordable water services for personal, household, and productive use.

CR-WASH in Humanitarian Responses

As a first responderorganization, NCA utilizes both its in-country implementation capacity, partner outreach, but also our global emergency roster and remote and direct technical support, to ensure that crisis-affected people access lifesaving water, sanitation, and hygiene services that are appropriate to their immediate needs and context. NCA implements humanitarian WASH responses according to international minimum and technical standards and following the Humanitarian Principles and Core Humanitarian Standards. Humanitarian responses can be implemented directly by NCA personnel and/or by partners, depending on the contingent situation. NCA commits to involve national partners and promote their contextual knowledge in humanitarian responses.

NCA is an active member of the WASH Cluster, both on global, regional and national level, and contributes to strategic sector outcomes through coordination and participation in relevant technical working groups (TWGs), leveraging on NCA’s strength as a faith-based actor in climate-resilient WASH programming, as well as our implementation approach, which is mostly local partner-led.

NCA designs and implements humanitarian CR-WASH activities with an exit or transition strategyand a long-term view, and follows the principle of Building Back Better, that allows to bridge with long-term development CR-WASH activities (e.g. moving from water trucking to an improved community managed water source).

NCA’s delivers humanitarian CR-WASH programmes in all types of emergencies, ranging from natural and climate change related disasters to protracted crises and large scale armed conflicts.

CR-WASH in Long-term Development Work

NCA implements development WASH programmes with a special focus on sustainability. This is not limited to technical options; it includes, among others, environmental, social, economic and managerial considerations. NCA’s CRWASH program contributes to reinforcing civil society structures and promotes active citizenship. NCA preferably implements WASH programmes through national partners. 

Most of the countries where NCA implements WASH programmes are constituted by fragile states, and governments have limited capacity to deliver WASH services. In these settings, where humanitarian and development needs often co-exist, NCA has developed specific approaches for responding to the different needs. In addition, NCA works together with communities to prepare and respond to climate-related hazards and natural disasters that threaten their WASH services and natural resources.

NCA  designs and implements  CR-WASH programs that incorporates elements of resilience, preparedness and risk reduction, so future shocks can have a lesser humanitarian impact on affected communities.

CR-WASH in Advocacy

An important part of NCA and partners’ work is to support people in exercising their rights to WASH services. NCA and partners support civil society organisations in presenting their needs and preferences to  relevant authorities. Where possible, NCA and partners contribute to the development and diffusion of WASH polices at national or regional level, participating in thematic fora and working groups. NCA’s advocacy work within CR-WASH draws linkages to the work we implement under our Peacebuilding, Fighting Inequality and GBV programmes.

Collaborating with Faith Actors and Civil Society

NCA works with faith actors, community representatives, local and international civil society actors, and relevant duty bearers. NCA builds on the advocacy influence and acceptability of its partners and uses its significant outreach and longer-term presence to reach out to communities, even in the most remote and hard-to-reach areas. Additionally, as a member of the Action by Churches Together (ACT) Alliance, NCA uses its influence to bring these principles and ways of working to other ACT partners. Finally, as a forward thinking and innovation driven organization, NCA seeks to increase its cooperation with the private sector, which has enabled it to maximize the potential and the effectiveness of its work within CR-WASH, and other thematic areas.

NCA’s work is underpinned by a commitment to leaving no one behind. This requires shifting the focus of all actors in the sector, especially governments and the private sector, to those not yet reached; those left behind by the already significant investment in WASH service delivery.

NCA and its partners work to strengthen local capacity to challenge duty bearers on ensuring equitable access to services and will support the development of the capacity of authorities or strategies at the local level to increase ownership and sustainability. NCA’s work gives opportunities to those with no or only limited access to WASH services to influence decisions being made by duty-bearers on when and how they can gain access. This is particularly important for poorer households, which according to evidence, tend to spend a greater percentage of their budgets on WASH services than wealthier households, and often spend a greater absolute number for services of lesser quality.

Access to WASH services is also highly dependent on whether a household is rural or urban, especially those living in peri-urban informal settlements, with little land tenure and in very crowded conditions. NCA operates in these diverse contexts, where stark inequalities between different regions persist, and where those living in fragile situations are twice as likely to lack basic sanitation and four times as likely to lack basic drinking water services as those living in non-fragile environments. Water scarcity is often the result of political processes and institutions that disadvantage the poor and marginalised. NCA’s rootedness in all levels of society as a faith-based actor gives it the possibility to engage with all parts of governance mechanisms, addressing the root causes of lack of access to safe water and sanitation services.