Implementing Water Safety Plans in the Caribbean and Latin America: A WHO Methodology for Managing Risk in Drinking Water Systems

CAPT Richard J. Gelting, PhD, PE

A Water Safety Plans is a preventive, risk management approach to ensuring drinking water safety. This emerging methodology is being increasingly applied in both developed and developing countries worldwide. The introduction of WSPs in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) was initiated in 2006 through a series of demonstration projects supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other national and international agencies. The projects’ objectives were to raise WSP awareness, build capacity and promote adoption of the approach while identifying factors that aid and hinder water safety planning efforts in resource-challenged settings. The purpose of this session is to share successes, challenges and lessons learned in order to support future WSP activity in the region.