Water quality issues are becoming more complex because the sources of pollution are often diverse, too many and difficult to monitor and even where the polluters are identified, the water managers lack the necessary authority to enforce compliance to the regulations. The objective of this focal area are developing and promoting new innovative tools for water quality management and pollution control for sustainable livelihoods as well as promoting joint research on particular water quality issues and challenges through an integrated water pollution management framework.
Activities under this focal area are implemented under the umbrella of the UNESCO-IHP International Initiative on Water Quality (IIWQ).