Water and Sanitation Regulation “appreciated”.

The Government of Nepal on 28 January 2025 (Tuesday) has appealed bilateral organizations, development partners and non-government sector to increase funding for drinking water and safe sanitation. “The government allocates very little budget for the achievement of the sectoral goals. Hence, we need your support for quality drinking water and safe sanitation services to people of Nepal,” said Honorable Minister for Water Supply, Mr. Pradeep Yadav, while addressing development partners at the Ministry of Water Supply (MoWS) interaction program to operationalize recently approved Water and Sanitation Regulation and meeting sectoral targets.

“I have been a witness to how we joined hands successfully while declaring Nepal an Open Defecation Free (ODF) country back in 2019… Nepal Government is now ready to lead the campaign for clean drinking water and safe sanitation and we expect your assistance and suggestions,” added Minister Yadav at the event organized at Everest Hotel in Kathmandu, Nepal participated by over 70 representatives from water and sanitation related government agencies and development partners.

The event, supported by United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), is the first public interaction of its kind since the Water and Sanitation Regulation was promulgated on 23 January 2025 (Thursday).

Meanwhile, the development partners thanked the Nepal Government saying they “appreciate” that the Water and Sanitation Regulation has been adopted almost two years after the WASH Act was promulgated in 2023.

“How we implement the Water and Sanitation Regulation by taking it forward is now critical,” said Ms. Sudha Shrestha, National Professional Officer at UN-Habitat Nepal Office. A MoWS led task team has already been formed identifying 12 utilities to pilot Water and Sanitation Regulation will be assisted for implementation. The development partner representatives also highlighted the need to cascade the Water and Sanitation Regulation at provincial and local level as well as facilitate municipal-level regulation.

Development partners also emphasized that the National Sanitation Mission flagship programme is now also key requirement for development partners to pitch in the resources to support the Nepal Government. 

Speaking at the same event, MoWS Joint Secretary & Spokesperson, Ms. Meena Shrestha highlighted that the newly approved Water and Sanitation Regulation aims to prevent duplication in WASH-related infrastructure and assigns responsibilities to all three tiers of government. She urged development partners to coordinate closely with all levels of government as directed by the Water and Sanitation Regulation. The regulation mandates permit for WASH infrastructure projects, with certain exemptions for marginalized communities and small projects.