Reaching the unreached

The Bhutanese have always lived in harmony with a pristine natural environment. As the country pursues its goal to improve the quality of life of the people, one of the greatest priorities is to improve hygiene standards and environmental sanitation.

The shortage of safe drinking water and poor sanitation has contributed to widespread and recurring health problems. Largely because of it, six out of 10 children in rural areas suffer from diarrhoea, worms, and skin and eye infections largely because of this; 600 children die from diarrhoea each year.

Today, 22.2 per cent of households do not have safe drinking water. People, usually women and children, still walk long distances to fetch water from streams and springs, limiting water use.

UNICEF has helped Bhutan establish rural water supplies since 1974. In the past two decades it has helped build and develop more than 1,760 rural water supply schemes reaching more than 200,000 people, a third of Bhutan's population. It has also helped build 4,000 latrines for more than 30,000 people in rural areas.

Provision shopkeeper Kinley Gyeltshen, 28, doubles as a plumber and sanitation supplier in Thinleygang village, an hour's drive on the mountainous road from the capital Thimphu. He sells about US$300 worth of pipes, taps, washers, latrine fittings, etc., a month. "People from around here come to me because it's more convenient," he explains, displaying a full rack of items he has in stock. "They don't have to travel a long distance for the parts they need to keep their systems in running order." UNICEF contributed to the initial start-up costs and helped in training him as a plumber. The initiative has helped improve maintenance of water and sanitation facilities in the area.

Bhutan now faces the challenge of reaching the unreached. Nearly 90 per cent of the rural population lives far away from roads, making it difficult and expensive to build water supply schemes.

The authorities aims to provide access to water for the entire population by the year 2000. About 580 existing water supply schemes need to be repaired, and 600 new ones constructed; and 1,000 spring protection schemes have been planned.

UNICEF has contributed US$5 million to the water and sanitation programme in the last five years with commendable results. But Bhutan urgently needs supplementary funding to sustain the benefits.

The rural water supply project has been seeking funds after support from the European Union ended in mid-1994. Small supplementary funds from a variety of donors has been insufficient for a country that still needs basic facilities.

Bhutan is also training and empowering its people to sustain their own facilities in the rural areas and to inculcate greater commitment at the village level.

Village maintenance committees and water caretakers are being given new skills to sustain their own services and facilities. Tool kits with equipment to carry out simple repairs are supplied to caretakers. The training programmes also help to strengthen the capacity of the communities to drive their own development and they reinforce the Bhutanese tradition of active participation at the community level. Labour contribution by the communities and government supervision make up about 35 per cent of the cost of each water supply facility.

In the villages, water supply and environmental sanitation are integrated in a unique approach called the model village, which promotes health and hygiene in a holistic manner. Water supply, latrines and drains are constructed in selected villages, animals moved away from homes, footpaths paved, and garbage disposal sites established.

Model villages are being encouraged in all the districts to serve as examples of healthy living environments. UNICEF supports the training of health workers and community leaders to promote sanitation and hygiene practice. Hardware supply is integrated with the promotion of awareness and mobilization of community participation.