STATEMENT: UN calls on states to advance democratic water governance, not corporate control

Statement by Shayda Edwards Naficy, Senior Organizer, International Water Campaign, Corporate Accountability International

For Immediate Release:
September 30, 2011

Contact:
Christine Chester, 617-695-2525

Yesterday, the UN Human Rights Council took a significant step in advancing the human right to water and giving specific recommendations on how to advance that right. The Council unanimously adopted a resolution calling on governments to take immediate action to realize the human right to water through democratic, transparent processes.

The resolution endorses recommendations from a recent UN expert’s report, bolstering the importance of putting basic needs before corporate profit. It also makes clear that water resources should be controlled and overseen by governments and the people they represent, not industry.

Unfortunately, the resolution fails to call on governments and the UN to limit the interference of giant transnational water corporations in global water governance and policymaking. It also references the World Water Forum as one of the arenas where governments should promote the human right to water. However, because this forum is corporate-driven, it is not a legitimate policy-making space.

This comes at a time when the water industry is pushing for governments to privatize water resources, with the help of key financial institutions such as the International Finance Corporation and even UN agencies. Increasingly, transnational corporations are working to influence the United Nations and other legitimate policymaking spaces through initiatives like the Global Compact’s CEO Water Mandate.

This resolution represents a significant advance in recognition of the human right to water and sanitation, and provides crucial parameters for realizing that right through accountable and transparent democratic water governance.

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