A/HRC/42/47/Add.6 sanitation, and that an explicit provision on the prioritization of water for personal and domestic use is included. PROGRESS ON-GOING: The Special Rapporteur is pleased to learn that the Water Code is in the process of being revised and that the revised Code will reflect the human rights to water and sanitation within its content. He looks forward to continued progress being made and the revised Code becoming law. C. Recommendation on institutional framework RECOMMENDATION 4: “Clearly define the division of power and responsibilities between the Ministry of Energy and Water Resources, the Housing and Communal Service, Vodokanal and local authorities under the water sector reform.” (A/HRC/33/49/Add.2, para. 59(b)) 21. In his country visit report, the Special Rapporteur identified the problematic fragmentation of responsibility that was prevalent within the structure of water and sanitation provision in Tajikistan, where different departments and authorities have control over various elements of water and sanitation supply. His interactions with people highlighted how this represented a challenge when issues needed to be reported, as it was unclear who was in charge (A/HRC/33/49/Add.2, para. 13). 22. According to research, as of 14 November 2018, the Government adopted the Water Sector Reform Programme 2016-2025 on 30 December 2015. One of the aims of the Programme was, by 2020, to create a framework “for the transition to Water Resource Management according to the basin principle and to clarify the competencies of different national institutions.”5 The Water Sector Reform Programme incorporates plans to establish “six regional water utility companies to be owned by the Housing and Communal Service (SUE KMK).” These regional utilities are envisaged to provide independent operations at the regional level and support the local water companies of cities and secondary towns, whilst also supporting affiliated utilities by “providing technical back-up, engineering support, and enhanced financial management.” 6 By 2017, the Housing and Communal Service and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development had set up two of these water utilities in the regions of Sughd and the Districts of Republican Subordination (DRS).7 23. Whilst it is clear that the Government is attempting to initiate policies aimed at harmonising responsibility for water provision, concerns have been raised as to the efficacy of the current plans, the way in which they are being implemented, and whether they do, indeed, reduce the complexities of the current system. In this regard, according to an assessment carried out by the World Bank in 2017, “the [water] sector reform process is moving slowly and is complicated by budgetary restrictions and the current overlapping authority structures in place […]. While it is too soon to assess the effectiveness of the program, at the outset the process runs the risk of establishing duplicative structures to the existing formal institutional arrangements. Implementation of reforms has proven to be challenging due to political economy considerations. Moreover, the sanitation sector is almost entirely missing from the reform discussions.” 8 24. The Government, in response to the follow-up questionnaire, has clarified that the new version of the draft “Water Code of the Republic of Tajikistan” reflects the powers of the authorized state body, in the field of water resources (Article 13) and drinking water supply (Article 15), as well as the mandate of local executive bodies (Article 19). 5 6 7 8 6 United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), “Tajikistan” [Internet], n/d, consulted 22 October 2018 http://www.unece.org/env/water/npd/countrydialogues/tj.html. World Bank, Glass Half Full: Poverty Diagnostic of Water Supply, Sanitation, and Hygiene Conditions in Tajikistan, August 2017. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/27830. Ibid. Ibid.