Two new e-learning courses and publications on indicators of SDG target 6.4 have been produced in Portuguese recently to accelerate the achievement of SDG 6, to “ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all”. 

The new materials are free of charge and targeted at those who play a role in data collection, analysis, and reporting on indicators 6.4.1 on Change in water use efficiency over time and 6.4.2 on Level of water stress: freshwater withdrawal as a proportion of available freshwater resources, as well as at people with an interest in water resources and water use. They have been developed by the Integrated Monitoring Initiative for SDG 6 (IMI-SDG6) team at FAO as part of their capacity development tools to support countries in data collection and use. 

SDG target 6.4 on water use and scarcity aims at “substantially increase water-use efficiency across all sectors and ensure sustainable withdrawals and supply of freshwater to address water scarcity and substantially reduce the number of people suffering from water scarcity by 2030”. The progress is monitored through two indicators: 6.4.1 and 6.4.2.

E-LEARNING COURSES 

The two new e-learning courses on indicators 6.4.1 and 6.4.2 are now part of the FAO elearning Academy’s selection. They take around two hours each to complete. Digital certificates are provided for those who take the final evaluation after finishing the course. 

The e-learning courses offer guidance on the rationale and the main characteristics of the indicators, and provide tools, methods and processes to support monitoring and reporting.  In particular, the course on 6.4.1 focuses on the economic and agronomic aspects of the computation, while the course on 6.4.2 highlights the environmental side of the indicator, including the assessment of freshwater resources. 

• SDG indicator 6.4.1 in Portuguese:

This course is also available in Arabic, English, French, Russian and Spanish.

• SDG indicator 6.4.2 in Portuguese:

This course is also available in English, French, Russian, Spanish, and soon in Arabic.

PUBLICATIONS 

Two new guidelines in Portuguese, intended to assist countries in improving their knowledge on the indicators and participating in the assessment of SDG indicators 6.4.1 and 6.4.2, are now available:

• “Guidelines for the calculation of the agriculture water use efficiency for global reporting. The agronomic parameters in the SDG indicator 6.4.1: yield ratio and proportion of rainfed production” in Portuguese. 

This publication is also available in English and soon in Arabic, French, Russian and Spanish too. 

• “Incorporating environmental flows into “water stress” indicator 6.4.2. Guidelines for a minimum standard method for global reporting” in Portuguese. 

This publication is also available in English and French, and soon in Arabic, Russian and Spanish too.