Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) faces socio-economic and environmental challenges in water management, deepened by the pandemic and inflation, decrease of economic activities and employment, and increased poverty, which hinder the capacity to advance in water and sanitation goals, as the region as a whole is currently off track to achieve the targets of SDG6. The latter justifies a review of the water governance systems and a new generation of evidence-based public policies to affirm and promote a water management transition. This is based on adoption of the human right to water and sanitation leaving no one behind, increasing equal access and affordability, eradicating water poverty, eliminating negative externalities, and developing circular economies throughout the water value chain. The region’s countries require timely, reliable, standardized information and capacity building material to develop and implement evidence-based policies.

The Regional Network and Observatory for Sustainable Water Management Transition (ROSA in Spanish) contributes to post-pandemic recovery and seeks to strengthen the capacity of countries to design, implement, monitor, and evaluate enhanced water policies. This addresses multidimensional problems on water, public and ecosystem health, resource efficiency and decoupling, as well as climate-resilient infrastructure. As a result, the project is expected to provide a space for active capacity building, discussion, interaction, and promotion of region-specific solutions as well as relevant information and data to address water management challenges. Through a Regional Network and Observatory, targeted and beneficiary countries will find a platform to strengthen their capacities to formulate and use relevant indicators for evidence-based water policies. This platform will entail an online format and the consolidation of a community of practice.

The project will support the target countries to advance in the formulation of effective policies and SDG 6 targets, which would be demonstrated through the implementation of at least one of the following two actions: i) countries take initiatives to develop or update water indicators and/or water plans or policies, and ii) countries engage in capacity building processes and exchange best practices and cost-effective solutions to address water challenges through a Regional Water Network and Observatory.