The Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) report, titled “Progress on drinking water, sanitation and hygiene: 2017 update and Sustainable Development Goal baselines” indicated that of the 2.1 billion people who do not have safely managed water, 844 million do not have even a basic drinking water service.
This first global assessment of “safely managed” drinking water and sanitation services also indicated that 263 million people still have to spend over 30 minutes per trip collecting water from sources outside the home, and 159 million still drink untreated water from surface water sources, such as streams or lakes.
In addition, of the 4.5 billion people who do not have safely managed sanitation, 2.3 billion still do not have basic sanitation services. This includes 600 million people who share a toilet or latrine with other households, and 892 million people – mostly in rural areas – who defecate in the open.
According to the new report, access to water and soap for handwashing varies immensely in the 70 countries with available data, from 15 per cent of the population in sub-Saharan Africa to 76 per cent in western Asia and northern Africa.
The report includes estimates for 96 countries on safely managed drinking water and 84 countries on safely managed sanitation.
In countries experiencing conflict or unrest, children are 4 times less likely to use basic water services, and 2 times less likely to use basic sanitation services than children in other countries.
There are big gaps in service between urban and rural areas. Two out of three people with safely managed drinking water and three out of five people with safely managed sanitation services live in urban areas.
Of the 161 million people using untreated surface water (from lakes, rivers or irrigation channels), 150 million live in rural areas.
As a result, every year, 361 000 children under 5 years of age die due to diarrhoea. Poor sanitation and contaminated water are also linked to transmission of diseases such as cholera, dysentery, hepatitis A, and typhoid.
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, stated “Safe water, sanitation and hygiene at home should not be a privilege of only those who are rich or live in urban centres. These are some of the most basic requirements for human health, and all countries have a responsibility to ensure that everyone can access them.”
Also, UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake stated “Safe water, effective sanitation and hygiene are critical to the health of every child and every community – and thus are essential to building stronger, healthier, and more equitable societies.
“As we improve these services in the most disadvantaged communities and for the most disadvantaged children today, we give them a fairer chance at a better tomorrow.”
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