A robust drinking-water quality management system is key to the realization of government commitments to provide their citizens with a reliable supply of clean and safe drinking-water. The risk-based drinking-water quality management methods and procedures applied along the water supply chain, from catchment to consumer, known as water safety planning (WSP), is considered best practice in countries around the world.

To support efforts towards achieving global development goals as well as the progressive realization of the human right to safe drinking water, there is a need to support the sustainable scale up of water safety planning through comprehensive capacity development, with the creation of an enabling legal, policy and institutional environment. To that end, the International Water Association (IWA) and the Philippine Water Works Association (PWWA) are organising the Global Water Safety Conference: A pathway to universal access of safe drinking water and sanitation and improved service delivery, to be held from 25 to 28 April 2016 in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan, Philippines.

The conference builds upon a long history of dedicated promotion of water safety planning by IWA. WSPs are at the core of the IWA's Bonn Charter (2004), and these principles are re-iterated in the IWA Lisbon Charter on Public Policy and Regulation which became effective in 2015. WSPs were first introduced in the WHO Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality in 2004, and continue to be promoted in the current edition of the GDWQ (2011).

The call for papers is now open, so check out how you can submit your abstracts and papers here.

Submissions are accepted for the following topics:

• Water Safety Plan Implementation: Benefits and Lessons Learned
• Innovative Policies and Regulations for Drinking Water Quality Management
• Risk-based Investment Planning for Water Supply Systems
• Operation and Maintenance of Water Supply Systems
• Auditing Water Safety Plans
• Improving Resilience to Climate Impacts from Catchment to Consumer
• Sanitation Safety Plan Implementation
• Integrating WSPs and SSPs: Opportunities, Examples and Lessons Learned
• WSPs for Small water supplies
• Water Safety Plan Impact Assessment
• Capacity building approaches on Water Safety Plans
• Approaches to sustainable scale up of Water Safety
• Equitable and Universal Access to Safe Drinking Water: Approaches, Initiatives and Lessons Learned

Programme Committee Members:

Chair – Asoka Jayaratne, Yarra Valley Water

Chair 2 - TBA

Committee Members:

David Sutherland, WHO

Alex von Hildebrand, WHO

Pritha Hariram, IWA

Marie Sagen, IWA

* Representatives from PWWA and UNICEF still to be confirmed

Venue:

Aziza Paradise Hotel, Puerto Princessa City, Palawan, Philippines

For more information, you can visit the following link : http://www.iwa-network.org/page/global-water-safety-conference-2016-programme or please contact Phrita Hariram (phrita.hariram@iwahq.org).