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Published on: 24/09/2015

After years of anticipation the Global Goals are with us. 15 years to end poverty. 15 years to achieve something extraordinary. To be the first generation where everyone in the world has clean water. To be the last generation to witness children dying of diarrhoea.

So why a five year countdown? It's simple. Because to meet the challenge of bringing water to 660 million and sanitation to 2.4 billion who don't have it now, and to cater for the 1.2 billion new people who'll be sharing the planet with us by 2030, will require change.

Change in how we see water and sanitation, not as charitable gifts but as services to which people have a right. Change that sees National Government taking leadership. Change that sees everyone else – NGOs, donors, the private sector supporting Governments. Change that sees properly worked out national plans backed by realistic budgets.

And if we don't manage to nail that change in the next five years, there's very little chance that we'll achieve the goals by 2030. So that's why we're counting down five years instead of 15 - five years to get going on meaningful change; so that in fifteen years time we really will get water and sanitation to everyone, everywhere, forever.

#globalgoals #Agenda4Change

Read the agenda for change: achieving universal access to water, sanitation and hygiene by 2030

Patrick Moriarty
CEO, IRC

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