Climate change is altering the water cycle through floods, droughts and rising sea levels, affecting water availability, quantity and quality. In West Africa, where 106 million people do not have clean water close to home and 256 million do not have a decent toilet, these changes are compounding the water and sanitation crisis. Lack of access to WASH and insufficient measures to address the effects of climate change are intertwined – they cannot be solved separately and must be addressed through multi-stakeholder engagement.

This briefing note is aimed at policy makers, and experts in both the climate sector and the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) sector. It analyses how WASH is integrated in climate policies (NDCs, NAPs), and highlights why West African governments need to focus more on climate-resilient WASH. It focuses on three countries in West Africa: Burkina Faso, Ghana and Niger.