Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in emergencies
Serving children at risk and in times of crisis.
The risk of human rights violations, violence and displacement to children in humanitarian emergencies is extreme. On top of it all, water and sanitation systems are often vulnerable to attack during conflict. With no potable water or adequate sanitation and hygiene facilities, children — especially those already suffering from malnutrition and weakened immune systems — become even more susceptible to water-borne diseases.
To prevent the outbreak of a public health emergency, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services must be prepared to support children and their communities in times of crisis – including during armed conflict and other fragile contexts.
UNICEF’s response
UNICEF's approach to WASH in emergencies focuses on preparedness in conflict and natural disaster risks. We provide emergency WASH services in over 60 countries, including those affected by armed conflict, migration crises, natural disasters, and diseases like cholera, Ebola and COVID-19.
UNICEF saves lives in fragile contexts by trucking water, treating piped water, repairing broken water supply and sanitation systems, drilling wells, building temporary latrines, providing essential hygiene items and delivering hygiene messages.
We help control and prevent infection in homes, schools, health-care facilities and public spaces by collaborating with other sectors and local partners to ensure the needs of even the hardest-to-reach families are met.
Building peace
Linking humanitarian and development work and strengthening resilience are important parts of how we help to prevent conflict and build peace through WASH in fragile and conflict-prone settings. UNICEF provides water and sanitation services to host and displaced communities promoting collaboration and enhancing social cohesion.
We also work to strengthen the WASH sector overall. By advocating for tariffs that help recover the costs of infrastructure, or by implementing public-private partnerships and systems strengthening at large, we are equipping communities to better cope with crises. UNICEF strengthens capacities for peace of key WASH stakeholders and promotes accountability and good governance of WASH services to strengthen the social contract. We also work with governments and other humanitarian agencies to strengthen the capacity of the private sector, WASH service providers and communities in building and maintaining resilient WASH services during and before emergencies.
Learn more about WASH for Peace here WASH for Peace | UNICEF WASH for Peace
After a disaster
UNICEF leads the humanitarian community in identifying the needs of populations recovering from disaster. We work to assess physical damages, economic loss and the cost of recovery in the wake of natural disasters and humanitarian emergencies, and partner with governments to help plan for recovery, redevelopment and capacity-building in the WASH sector.
Risk-informed programming
UNICEF and partners support countries to create policies and programmes that serve children living in changing environments. In over 50 countries, we help governments remove bottlenecks that constrain progress in the WASH sector. UNICEF also hosts the Global WASH Cluster, a partnership of 77 organizations that helps countries respond in emergencies.