We are living in a world where close to one billion people do not have access to improved water sources, and 2.6 billion people do not use improved sanitation facilities.1 The repercussions of this are myriad on an individual as well as societal level. For the individual, access to safe water and sanitation is fundamental for leading a dignified life, and improves health, access to education and work opportunities. On a societal level, a population that has access to safe water and sanitation services will be healthier, more available to work and can contribute to development and economic growth, while living in a cleaner environment. Sanitation plays a vital role in our daily lives, but this is often downplayed or not discussed due to cultural taboos. Defecating in the open, on streets and in fields is an unacceptable reality experienced daily by over one billion people.2Women in particular must protect their dignity by urinating or defecating only under cover of darkness – thereby risking their safety from attack by men or animals, and their health, as they cannot urinate or defecate when they need to. Even where people are able to use a dedicated toilet or latrine, these are frequently unhygienic, unaffordable, or at too great a distance from the home or workplace. Furthermore, there is seldom consideration of women’s and girls’ needs for menstrual management. For those who have access to sanitation, in much of the world, wastewater treatment, and disposal and / or reuse of domestic or sanitation wastewater is not considered, with wastewater released back into water bodies or into the ground without treatment. This has an extremely negative impact on the environment, on the quality of drinking water and ultimately on human health. There is no life without water, and there is nothing that can be substituted for it when water is scarce. Every woman, man and child requires access to at least a minimum daily amount of water to live healthily.