Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH)
Providing families with clean water, improved sanitation and good hygiene practices
Challenge
Fifty per cent of the population in South Sudan lacks access to safe water.
To survive, families may be forced to drink dirty water, putting them at risk of waterborne diseases such as cholera and diarrhoea, which remain leading causes of death among children in South Sudan. The situation is further aggravated by poor hygiene practices. Just 10 per cent of the population have access to improved sanitation.
The latest on the water, sanitation and hygiene situation in South Sudan
Charity's impossible choice: giving her children dirty water or no water at all. What would you do?
Solution
Clean water for every child
UNICEF is providing communities with access to safe water. One way of doing this is by drilling boreholes. In areas where long-term solutions are still needed, UNICEF is trucking fresh water to communities or providing families with purification tablets and powder. Latrines are constructing and maintained, and communities sensitized on importance of a sanitation plan. Hygiene promotion activities are ongoing across the country to prevent the transmission of diseases and provide a healthy future for the children.
Wash your hands! That's the message of this song made by South Sudan's Hardlife Avenue Stars.