A/HRC/12/24 page 26 • States must abide by their human rights obligations related to sanitation at all times, including in emergency situations, in disaster response and during conflict (b) Information gathering: • States should collect current, accurate and detailed information about sanitation coverage in the country and the characteristics of unserved and underserved households. Disaggregated data is necessary to determine which groups are particularly disadvantaged. This information should be made public and inform the design of policies for the sector and the allocation of budgets. (c) Plans, policies and responsibilities: • States must adopt a national action plan on sanitation, endorsed at the highest levels, which duly reflects the State’s human rights obligations related to sanitation, ensuring participation of all concerned individuals, communities and groups. States should promote the participation of national human rights institutions and sanitation experts in these endeavours • States should assign clear institutional responsibilities for sanitation at all levels and avoid fragmentation. Where responsibilities are assigned to different ministries, departments or institutions, all efforts should be made to ensure adequate coordination • States should adopt appropriate policies to expand access to unserved and underserved areas, taking an integrated approach that addresses the underlying structural reasons for discrimination in access to sanitation • States should include sanitation in their national poverty-reduction strategies and development plans (d) National budgets: • The vital importance of sanitation should be reflected in national and subnational budgets, as well as in budgets for international assistance and cooperation (e) International assistance and cooperation: • Development agencies should prioritize interventions in the sanitation sector and put the human rights obligations related to sanitation at the core of their projects. They should apply a human rights-based approach to sanitation, meaning that every intervention in the sanitation sector should comply with the human rights principles of non-discrimination, participation, and accountability, and should be aimed at the fulfilment of the relevant human