A/HRC/45/11 and sanitation services.49 This body is responsible for overseeing the operation of service providers, recommending tariffs to the different municipalities and applying sanctions to service providers in cases of non-compliance. With regard to tariff setting, the regulatory body has to take into account several principles, some in line with the human rights framework, such as: solidarity (the tariff structure must distribute costs so that prices take into account the ability to pay of the different users), non-discrimination (all users falling under the same tariff category must pay the same prices), simplicity (tariffs must be elaborated in such a way that they are easy to comprehend, apply and control) and transparency (the tariff structure must be explicit and available to all the parties involved in the service). Another example is the Public Services Regulatory Authority of Costa Rica, designated as the regulatory body for all public services, including water and sanitation, in accordance with Law No. 7593/1996. 50 This body is responsible for tariff setting and monitoring the compliance of the quality, quantity, continuity and reliability of the services provided. In this case, tariffs are set under the principles of social equity, environmental sustainability and economic efficiency, but without hindering the financial viability of service providers. 40. Additionally, steps have been taken to identify and regulate informal service providers to hold them accountable. In the Plurinational State of Bolivia, the authority for social control of water and sanitation services has been working on identifying and evaluating informal service providers, especially those related to faecal sludge management, with a view to developing strategies for formal regularization and control. 51 D. Principle of accountability Special Rapporteur’s report on accountability52 1. 41. The principle of accountability in the water and sanitation sector is a key principle that has gained momentum recently. The evolution of the commitment to accountability in the sector is captured by the Global Analysis and Assessment of Sanitation and DrinkingWater country reports. For instance, in 2011, nearly half of the 75 responding countries indicated that they used periodic review processes as means of holding governments accountable for achieving expected results.53 In 2019, over two thirds of the 115 responding countries reported that they had conducted joint sector reviews for water and sanitation, often resulting in the revision of national policies and the establishment of new priorities. 54 42. In addition, the rise of non-governmental organizations and their work on accountability further indicate the importance of the principle of accountability. For instance the Water Integrity Network focuses on promoting four elements of water integrity, that is, transparency, accountability, participation and prevention of corruption. In 2015, the Network developed a training manual on water integrity, in which it highlighted the importance of clarifying clear and separate roles and responsibilities among actors to strengthen accountability and transparency. Most recently, the #ClaimYourWaterRights campaign by End Water Poverty emphasized the role of national human rights institutions in holding the actors in the water and sanitation sector accountable. 43. Despite the focused attention on the principle of accountability, the Special Rapporteur had observed that it nonetheless often remained misunderstood by the water, sanitation and hygiene community. He felt that it was important to translate the concept beyond the human rights circle so that it was understandable and so that it could be translated into the realities of the water, sanitation and hygiene sector. At the outset of his term as mandate holder, the Special Rapporteur highlighted that important progress could be made in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation by guaranteeing that they were explicitly recognized in national legislation and by developing holistic and comprehensive national policies, regulations and budgeting frameworks reflecting those 49 50 51 52 53 54 Submission from the Plurinational State of Bolivia. Submission from Costa Rica. Submission from the Plurinational State of Bolivia. A/73/162. See www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/pdf/glaas_report_2012_eng.pdf. See https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/326444/9789241516297-eng.pdf?ua=1. 13