Preventing corruption in the water sector

Good governance is crucial to ensure sustainable and equitable use and distribution of water, and to secure effective delivery of water supply and sanitation. Transparency, accountability and integrity are critical governance components without which corruption issues cannot be successfully addressed. As the world is rapidly facing the imminent issue of water resource scarcity, it is of utmost urgency to improve the governance and integrity of the water sector.

Good governance is not possible without all actors of society engaged in the decision-making processes and clear political commitments to integrity and transparency in the water sector. Clear political commitment is critical to ensure that the following actions will result in positive impacts on water governance:

Design and implement sound policies which establish mechanisms for information provision on water budgets, legislations and policy-making.
Design and implement diagnostic studies to identify water integrity risks.
Integrate corruption risk assessments into policies and national water action planning.
Encourage stakeholder participation to create an equitable and transparent water sector.