A/HRC/36/45/Add.1 79. Another entity that is involved in the area of cooperation is the Portuguese Water Partnership, a network of organizations that aim to develop synergies and maximize potential for the development of the water sector in the world, promoting the construction and consolidation of alliances and partnerships between national institutions and all nations engaged in sustainable water use and enhancement of water resources. The Partnership brings together various stakeholders from water service providers, research centres, civil society, professional associations and members of scientific societies. 80. Non-State actors such as Águas de Portugal and the Portuguese Water Partnership play an important role in the area of technical cooperation in Portugal. In that connection, it is important to emphasize that even where non-State actors take an active role in development cooperation, States have an extraterritorial obligation to ensure that all standards and policy relating to technical cooperation are in line with human rights standards and guide the activities of non-State actors (see A/71/302, paras. 10-12). VIII. Conclusion and recommendations 81. The Special Rapporteur finds that Portugal has undoubtedly achieved outstanding progress in the water and sanitation sector over the past decades, which is largely recognized worldwide. Portugal now enjoys almost near universal water coverage and the coverage of sanitation services, although at a lower rate than water services, has also shown signs of progress. There has also been an impressive improvement in the quality of drinking water and wastewater treatment. The Special Rapporteur commends all the stakeholders for that success. However, his assessment of the current situation through the human rights lens shows that the work has yet to be finished in order for the so-called “Portuguese miracle” to be complete. In that context, the Special Rapporteur notes that certain normative content of the human rights to water and sanitation are reflected in legislative and policy frameworks and are observed in regulation and service provisions in Portugal. However, he underscores that the human rights perspective includes all aspects of normative content of the human rights to water and sanitation as well as human rights principles. In that respect, he encourages Portugal to continue its efforts to implement its obligation in terms of the human rights to water and sanitation in a holistic manner. He emphasizes that realizing the human rights to water and sanitation for all Portuguese citizens, including those in vulnerable situations and residents of the autonomous regions, is a cross-cutting issue for realizing other relevant human rights. 82. In that connection, the Special Rapporteur recommends that the Government of Portugal: (a) Improve coordination, dialogue and exchange of information between all levels of government in relation to access to water and sanitation; (b) Adopt legal provisions that recognize the human rights to water and sanitation at the national level and in particular, recommends that the parliament approve the bill providing for legal recognition of the human rights to water and sanitation at the national level; (c) Stipulate explicit legal provisions that oblige local authorities and the autonomous governments of Azores and Madeira to respect, protect and fulfil the human rights to water and sanitation; (d) Adopt legislative measures to prohibit disconnections of water and sanitation services owing to an inability to pay; (e) Adopt legislative measures on affordability of access to water and sanitation services, stipulating that all individuals are provided with an affordable and reliable service that is adequate for basic human needs in the context of the national, local and autonomous government levels, reflecting the challenges people face in practice and the contexts in which they live; 18