New Approaches to Monitor Inequalities in Access to Water and Sanitation: The SDGs in Latin America and the Caribbean

Abstract

In the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Targets 6.1 and 6.2 show, in their formulation, some alignment with the normative content of the human rights to water and sanitation (HRWS). However, the principle of equality and non-discrimination, which applies to all human rights, was not clearly incorporated into the indicators adopted to assess and monitor these targets. This paper contributes to bridging this gap by proposing two methodological strategies to address inequalities in analyses of access to water and sanitation services. The first consists in adjusting the indicators of access to these services according to inequality. The second proposes an assessment of intersecting forms of inequality. An application of these methods in Latin America and the Caribbean highlights significant regional heterogeneity and elevated inequality in access to services in the countries of this region. The methods demonstrate their potential in contributing to assessment and monitoring of the SDGs, but outdated or lacking data are obstacles to more in-depth analyses.