Today, the Third Committee at the United Nations General Assembly invited the Special Rapporteur on the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation, Ms. Catarina de Albuquerque, to present her report on the right to participation in the context of water and sanitation rights. In responding to her address, the Maldives expressed its wholehearted support for the Special Rapporteur's message that the participation of all those affected is essential for developing effective solutions. Participation is recognised as a human right in several human rights instruments which the Maldives is a party to.
The Maldives took the opportunity to raise the link between climate change and water rights—otherwise absent from the Special Rapporteur's report. The impacts of sea level rise, salt water intrusion and changes in rainfall patterns in the Maldives pose a major threat to the sustainable supply of freshwater in the Maldives, a third of the country's islands already facing a shortage of potable water during the dry season.
Seeing that climate change is one the root causes of water stress and scarcity, the Maldives emphasised on the need for community participation in climate change decision-making. The Maldives extended an invitation to the Special Rapporteur to visit the country and provide her insights and recommendations on how the Maldivian people can secure their rights to water and sanitation in the face of new challenges.
The intervention was made by the representative of the Maldives delegation, Ms. Shiruzimath Sameer.
