ID :
190485
Wed, 06/22/2011 - 16:27
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Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/190485
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United Nations launches major push to improve global sanitation by 2015
In a bid to improve health and well-being of millions of people worldwide, United Nations launched a major push to accelerate progress towards goal of halving, by 2015, the proportion of the population without access to basic sanitation.
Access to sanitation has been recognized by the UN as a human right, a basic service required to live a normal life. And yet, some 2.6 billion people - or half the population in developing world - still lack access to improved sanitation.
Sustainable sanitation: The Five-Year-Drive to 2015, was established by the General Assembly in a resolution adopted last December that called on Member States to redouble efforts to close sanitation gap, one of eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that world leaders have pledged to achieve by 2015. It called for an end to open defecation, most dangerous sanitation practice for public health and one practised by over 1.1 billion people who have no access to facilities.
Ending open defecation, in particular, will not be easy, it will require strong political commitment, a focused policy framework and reliable supply chains for both building and maintaining affordable latrines. Children under five are the most vulnerable to poor hygiene and inadequate sanitation, two of major causes of diarrhoea.
According to UN Children’s Fund UNICEF, the disease kills at least 1.2 million children under five each year. “We can reduce cases of diarrhoea in children under five by a third - and save an untold number of young lives - simply by expanding access of communities to sanitation,” said Anthony Lake, UNICEF’s Executive Director.
He said focusing on total hygiene does more than improve health. “It can also improve safety of women and girls, who are often targeted when they are alone outdoors. Providing safe, private toilets may also help girls stay in school - which we know can increase their future earnings and help break the cycle of poverty.”
Prince of Orange, Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, who is Chairperson of UN Secretary-General’s Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation, noted that sanitation is arguably the most overlooked and less advanced MDG target.
“It is unglamorous, yet vital,” he stated. “Neglecting need for proper toilets allows a slow moving crisis to continue.” Main messages of new drive, is that sanitation is vital for health, brings dignity, equality and safety, represents a good economic investment and sustains clean environments.
Access to sanitation has been recognized by the UN as a human right, a basic service required to live a normal life. And yet, some 2.6 billion people - or half the population in developing world - still lack access to improved sanitation.
Sustainable sanitation: The Five-Year-Drive to 2015, was established by the General Assembly in a resolution adopted last December that called on Member States to redouble efforts to close sanitation gap, one of eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that world leaders have pledged to achieve by 2015. It called for an end to open defecation, most dangerous sanitation practice for public health and one practised by over 1.1 billion people who have no access to facilities.
Ending open defecation, in particular, will not be easy, it will require strong political commitment, a focused policy framework and reliable supply chains for both building and maintaining affordable latrines. Children under five are the most vulnerable to poor hygiene and inadequate sanitation, two of major causes of diarrhoea.
According to UN Children’s Fund UNICEF, the disease kills at least 1.2 million children under five each year. “We can reduce cases of diarrhoea in children under five by a third - and save an untold number of young lives - simply by expanding access of communities to sanitation,” said Anthony Lake, UNICEF’s Executive Director.
He said focusing on total hygiene does more than improve health. “It can also improve safety of women and girls, who are often targeted when they are alone outdoors. Providing safe, private toilets may also help girls stay in school - which we know can increase their future earnings and help break the cycle of poverty.”
Prince of Orange, Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, who is Chairperson of UN Secretary-General’s Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation, noted that sanitation is arguably the most overlooked and less advanced MDG target.
“It is unglamorous, yet vital,” he stated. “Neglecting need for proper toilets allows a slow moving crisis to continue.” Main messages of new drive, is that sanitation is vital for health, brings dignity, equality and safety, represents a good economic investment and sustains clean environments.
