A/71/302 principles. However, those organizations do not yet r ecognize such principles as obligations under international human rights law or necessarily observe them as such in project implementation and reporting. Some elements of the normative content of the human rights to water and sanitation, such as water quality and availability, are addressed by development cooperation projects, while others, such as affordability of services and accessibility, are systematically absent from policies. 37. In that respect, the recently issued OECD Principles on Water Governan ce represent a relevant example of a broad political commitment on the part of developed countries. The 12 principles clearly encompass some human rights principles, such as transparency and participation (referred to as “stakeholder engagement” therein), as well as other good practices, such as promoting policy coherence across sectors. However, important normative content, such as affordability, appears as more of an aspiration than an obligation under human rights law. 21 A 2007 policy paper of the OECD Development Assistance Committee on human rights and development clearly indicated the need to integrate human rights into decision-making, establish safeguards and promote the observation of human rights principles such as non-discrimination. 22 38. It is important to clarify that the observation of some human rights principles and normative content is not the same as, and is usually far from, the application of a human rights-based approach. To ensure an effective foundation for a human rights-based approach to development cooperation in the water and sanitation sector, States and multilateral agencies must adopt a holistic view of policy, project and programme compliance within the human rights framework. 39. A few funders have implemented projects aiming explicitly to improve the situation with respect to the human rights to water and sanitation. One of the very few examples of a project with a specific human rights focus is a German Cooperation-funded project in Kenya on ensuring the right to water for the poorest. Considering the need to supply drinking water to the urban poor, the project set up a network of water kiosks to sell water at regulated prices and created water action groups to improve participation. Consequently, the Government of Kenya reques ted funders to align their programmes to reflect the human right s to water and sanitation. 23 Another example is the creation of a manual on the right to water and sanitation, a tool to assist policymakers and practitioners in developing strategies for implementing the human rights to water and sanitation, which was funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), that includes recommendations for development cooperation. 24 40. The Special Rapporteur is of the view that the framework for the human right s to water and sanitation should be applied across all forms and levels of water and __________________ 21 22 23 24 12/24 See OECD, “OECD principles on water governance”, available from www.oecd.org/governance/ oecd-principles-on-water-governance.htm . See OECD, “Development Assistance Committee action-oriented policy paper on human rights and development”, 1 June 2007. See European Commission, “Commission staff working document: tool-box — a rights-based approach, encompassing all human rights for European Union development cooperation ”, 30 April 2014. See Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions and others, Manual on the Right to Water and Sanitation (Geneva, 2007). 16-13590