Billions Lack Basic Water & Sanitation: WHO, UNICEF Report

Poor sanitation & contaminated water are linked to transmission of diseases such as cholera, dysentery & typhoid.

2.1 billion people worldwide lack access to safe, readily available water at home. 

(Photo: iStock)

In times when we tend to take almost everything for granted, a shocking new report by World Health Organisation (WHO) and United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) states that 3 in every 10 people do have access to safe, clean water. This roughly translates to 2.1 billion people worldwide.

The report also states that 6 in every 10 people lack safely managed sanitation. That is a whooping 4.5 billion people!

It is possibly the first time that such an exhaustive global assessment of drinking water, sanitation and hygiene has taken place.

Billions lack basic water and sanitation.(Photo: Liju Joseph/The Quint)

Deadly Consequences

Stressing the importance of safe water, effective sanitation and hygiene for the health of every child, the Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) report states that poor sanitation and contaminated water are linked to transmission of diseases such as cholera, dysentery, hepatitis A, and typhoid among children.

3,61,000

Every year 3,61,000 children under 5 years of age die due to diarrhoea.

The report states that good hygiene is one of the simplest and most effective ways to prevent the spread of disease.

Significant Inequalities

There are shocking inequalities in terms of availability of safe water throughout the world.

15% & 76%

Out of the 70 countries monitored in the report, 15% of the population in sub-Saharan Africa & 76% in western Asia and northern Africa have access to water and soap for hand-washing.

Children are 4 times less likely to use basic water services, and 2 times less likely to use basic sanitation services in many conflict zones across the world.

There is also a glaring gap between urban and rural areas. In urban areas, 2 out of 3 people have access to safe drinking water while 3 out of 5 people get proper sanitation services.

150 million

Meanwhile, 150 million rural population uses untreated surface water from streams & lakes.

Call for Ending Open Defecation by 2030

In an effort to decrease global inequalities, the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have called for ending open defecation and achieving universal access to basic services by 2030.

But, data reveals that in 90 countries, progress towards basic sanitation is too slow due to which they will not reach universal coverage by 2030.

The report defines basic services as ‘having a protected drinking water source that takes less than thirty minutes to collect water from, using an improved toilet that does not have to be shared with other households, and having hand-washing facilities with soap and water in the home’.

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