Access for all: securing older people's access to water and sanitation

Poor older women and men in the developing world are often ‘unserved’ in terms of water and sanitation despite the universality of the right to water (Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 2002). This paper explores the main barriers to accessing safe water and sanitation that poor older people face such as the prohibitive cost of water, difficulty in access and use of service points, and the lack of disaggregated data (by age and sex) on who has access to safe water and sanitation. The paper then presents three examples of practical interventions by HelpAge International and its partners to address these issues and concludes with recommendations for both policy makers and practitioners on how to improve and secure access to water and sanitation for poor older people.