Summary

A decade has passed since water and sanitation has been explicitly recognized as a human right, yet the specifics of how to implement the obligation to progressively realize those human rights still require further clarification and understanding. In the present report, the Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation, Léo Heller, examines the nature of the obligation of progressive realization as it relates specifically to the human rights to water and sanitation. In this context, the obligation comprises several components, each of which needs to be achieved if the obligation as a whole is to be satisfied. In the report, the concepts of progressive realization of human rights, of using the maximum of its available resources and of fulfilling the minimum core obligations are addressed. The Special Rapporteur unpacks the three constituent parts, clarifies each one and then provides an integrated analysis of the concept, illustrating ways to monitor its implementation.