A/71/302 (OECD), accounting for more than half of the amount of funds dedicated to the sector, do not clearly indicate, for example, whether rural or urban areas have been targeted. 10 Considering the markedly lower levels of access to adequate water and sanitation services in rural areas compared with urban areas, that information gap indicates a need for improved reporting by Member States. Another noteworthy source of data inaccuracy is the non-inclusion of important interventions in informal settlements because those are considered to be part of so -called “slum/squatter upgrading”. 21. It is also relevant to point out that significant proportions of development cooperation are channelled through non-governmental organizations and civil society, multilateral organizations, public-private partnerships and private contractors. In the water and sanitation sector, data reveal an unstable trend: in 2006, 51 per cent of funds were channelled through a public entity in developed States, while in 2011, that figure was 83 per cent. 6 22. Overall, notwithstanding growing levels of development cooperation, it is still insufficient in quantity and questionable in terms of targeting when it comes t o meeting the world’s needs for water and sanitation. 11 For example, commitments of funds for basic systems, a proxy indicator for the extent to which the urban poor and rural populations are being reached, are consistently less than those for large systems. In 2013, 24 per cent of funds went to basic systems, compared with 50 per cent for large systems, 12 with a decrease in funds for those projects from 26 per cent to 21 per cent between 2010 and 2012. 8 Moreover, development cooperation still does not appear to be allocated with priority to the least developed countries. B. Types of water and sanitation projects funded through development cooperation 23. In 2014, the OECD database on development cooperation registered some 7,500 projects in the water and sanitation sector in more than 140 countries, financed by OECD member States, OECD non-member States and multilateral funders. Some 2,700 of those projects were financed in the 48 least developed countries, totalling close to $2.6 billion, or approximat ely 30 per cent of total funding in the sector. 13 24. Those levels of development cooperation are likely linked to the fact that the least developed countries did not meet the Millennium Development Goals on water and sanitation. While 49 per cent of the population of those countries have gained access to improved water sources since 1990, the level of access overall remained at 69 per cent. Regarding access to improved sanitation, only 27 per cent of the __________________ 10 11 12 13 8/24 See Wilbrod Ntawiha, “People in rural areas risk being left behind as aid to water and sanitation appears to provide better support to urban areas”, 22 March 2016, available from http://devinit.org/news/#!/post/world-water-day-2016. See OECD, “Financing water and sanitation in developing countries: the contribution of external aid”, June 2013, available from www.oecd.org/dac/stats/Brochure_water_2013.pdf. See WaterAid, “Essential element: why international aid for water, sanitation and hygiene is still a critical source of finance for many countries” (2015). See OECD, “Water-related aid data at a glance”, Development Finance Statistics database, available from www.oecd.org/dac/stats/water-relatedaiddataataglance.htm (accessed 26 June 2016). 16-13590