South Asian conference on sanitation opens

international | environment | news report Thursday September 21, 2006 10:03 by Qasim Rajpar - Daily Awami Awaz Karachi qasimrajpar at gmail dot com

Govt trying to improve water and sanitation: Shukat Aziz

SACOSAN-2 inaugurated in Islamabd.

Prime Minister of Pakistan shukat aziz adreesing inaugural session of SACOSAN-2

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister of Pakistan Shukat Aziz said The government is committed to achieving the millennium development goals (MDGs) that include reducing by half the number of people without sustainable access to drinking water and sanitation by 2015.

Speaking at the inaugural session of the Second South Asian Conference on Sanitation (SACOSAN-2), here on wednesday he said awareness among people over sanitation issues should be increased, adding, “In the absence of popular sensitivity to sanitation, improving this important aspect of our lives will remain elusive.”

He said that the conference demonstrated Pakistan’s commitment to finding ways and means of improving sanitation facilities in the region.

The two-day conference has drawn a large number of foreign delegates. It will address key issues and problems related to sanitation, hygiene and clean drinking water.

Aziz said that experience showed that sanitation needs of the people could not be met by the government alone. “In order to improve sanitation, we need to promote greater understanding among countries, policy-makers, service providers and communities,” he said.

He said that the government had allocated Rs 120 billion under the medium term development framework for implementing water supply and sanitation projects between 2005 and 2010. Another initiative, he said, was the ‘Drinking Water for All Programme’, which aimed at providing safe drinking water to everyone in the country through installation of purification plants at the village level.

While reaffirming commitment to regional cooperation, he said that rise of South Asia would change Asia and the rise of Asia would change the world. “We should pool our energies, experiences and best practices as this would be a win-win situation for all,” he said.

Cecila Lotse, the regional director of the United Nation’s Children’s Fund (UNICEF), said that access to improved sanitation in South Asia was doubled between 1990 and 2004, but two out of three people in the region still lacked basic sanitation.

“Despite all efforts, coverage is still among the lowest in the world, while we have come a long way, the harsh reality is that we need to press on with full vigor if we are to ensure the MGD target by 2015,” he said. She said that hygiene and sanitation were fundamental to child survival and development. “We know that improving excreta disposal can decrease diarrhea rates by 35 percent and washing hands with soap at critical times can decrease diarrhea by over 47 percent; such improvements do nothing less than save children’s lives,” she said.

Recent research indicates that washing hands with soap could have a significant effect on reduction of acute respiratory infections with preliminary findings from a study conducted in Karachi showing the reduction rate may be as high as 40 percent.

She said that there were a number of other reasons behind the efforts to improve the sanitation situation in the region. “It is true that many women in South Asia only go for defecation only after the dark, this can lead to great discomfort as well as to coping patterns that aggravate malnutrition and increase the risk of serious illness,” she said.

Defecation in the fields also puts women at risk of sexual harassment and assault, while lack of separate toilets in schools was a main factor in girls’ dropout rates, she said. She said that the provision of sanitation facilities to women would mean allowing them crucial privacy and dignity.

In his welcome address, Federal Minister for Environment Makhdoom Syed Faisal Saleh Hayat said that sanitation coverage in South Asian countries was particularly daunting because of the rapid rate of urbanisation and greater demand in densely populated areas, which was both expensive and challenging.

He said that the government had approved the National Environment Policy, which was being implemented, while a National Sanitation Policy had also been finalised and was awaiting the cabinet’s approval.

SACOSAN-2 will approve Islamabad decleration on thursday.

Ends