In the North:

Local authorities: in France, Spain, Belgium and Italy, town councils mobilise part of their budgets to contribute to developing water and sanitation projects through decentralised cooperation with local councils in the South. In France the Loi Oudin provides a specific legal framework for such actions.

Water and Sanitation Utilities: whether private or public, many water supply and sanitation companies in France, Holland and the UK contribute to water and sanitation projects in developing countries.

Employees of water companies: they contribute their time and expertise to solidarity actions and sometimes even establish associations to mobilise further funding and support (Aqua4All in the Netherlands and Aquassistance in France). 

Water users themselves are key stakeholders: in the UK users are invited to contribute as they pay their water bill to access to water and sanitation via the NGO WaterAid. In decentralised cooperation the support and involvement of the citizens contributes to the sustainability of actions.

In the South:

International solidarity actions for water and sanitation target the poorest populations, those often overlooked by larger programmes, those living in rural areas or on the periphery of larger towns. They work primarily with local stakeholders rather than central governments. Stakeholders include:

Local authorities

Local water providers

Community groups (women's groups, schools, markets employees etc).

These actions are driven by people who wish to redress the unjust imbalance of access to water and sanitation around the world. Find out more about international solidarity actions in France and around Europe and how you could get involved.

Share your experiences, encourage more people to get involved and help us to highlight the role these actions play in bringing access to all – join the platform for international solidarity for water and sanitation