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| © UNICEF/HQ07-0634/Pirozzi |
| Boys walk toward the UNICEF-provided latrine in the village of Kobelema, in Liberia. In countries with limited access to safe sanitation, simple household latrines can have a major impact on improving child health. |
World Water Day is observed around the world, where unsafe water supplies contribute to 88 per cent of all diseases. In 2008, which is also the International Year of Sanitation, the message to governments around the world is that safe-water goals cannot be achieved without directly tackling the current sanitation crisis.
To underscore the urgency of the problem, a new WASH (water supply, sanitation and hygiene) publicity campaign highlights the ever-rising numbers of those affected. WASH campaign posters depict the universal signs for men and women’s bathrooms, urging the public: “Hurry Up! 2.6 billion people are waiting to use the toilet.”
Facts:
- Every 20 seconds, a child dies as a result of the terrible sanitation conditions endured by some 2.6 billion people globally. That adds up to 1.5 million children lives cut short by a cause we know well how to prevent.
- Lack of safe toilets leads to 200 million tonnes of untreated waste in our living environment every year. That waste is full of pathogens that cause diarrhoeal disease, the second leading cause of death for children under the age of five.
- A recent poll of 11,000 medical professionals for the British Medical Journal established sanitation as the greatest medical milestone in 150 years – ahead of penicillin, the successful use of anaesthesia and mapping the human genome.
Thursday March 20th is the Water World Day!
UNICEF organized two major events on Saturday the 22nd, in Geneva and New York to spread awareness on water and sanitation issues all over the world.
Get informed by reading the 5 messages from UNICEF, and let us know what you think!
1. Sanitation is Vital for Human Health
http://esa.un.org/iys/health.shtml
2. sanitation generates economic benefits
http://esa.un.org/iys/economic.shtml
3. Sanitation Contributes to Dignity and Social Development
http://esa.un.org/iys/dignity_social.shtml
4. Sanitation Helps the Environment
http://esa.un.org/iys/environment.shtml
5. Improving Sanitation is Achievable
http://esa.un.org/iys/achievable.shtml