Science and Health

Over 4,000 children die everyday due to poor sanitation

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-04-27 20:49

SURABAYA, Indonesia - Poor implementation of sanitation and lacking access of clean water have killed over 4,000 children per day in the world, the World Bank said here Tuesday.

Communication officer of the bank Chrishtopher M. Walsh said that most of the fatalities are in developing countries.

"Today, about 4,000 children die everyday because of improver access on water and sanitation," he said at the workshop on Evidence-Based Advocacy for Millennium Development Goals held by the bank.

"Most of them are in developing countries, Africa, East Asia, South Asia and Latin America,"said Walsh.

In Indonesia, over 50,000 children under five die every year of diarrhea, due to water related diseases, the bank communication officer for sanitation for Southeast Asia, Yosa Yuliarsa said.

Although there is progress on the people access to water and implementation of sanitation, there are still over 2.6 billion people in the world still do not have access on water and sanitation, said Walsh.

"I mean even though there is progress there is still along way to go," he said.

The officer said that the main challenge is now how to turn this situation around to help achieve the target of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

He said that the world needs a leadership to reach the target of getting access for water and sanitation for all.

The Indonesian government has launched a program to provide access to adequate sanitation to 80 percent of urban households by 2014.

The program with cost of $5.5 billion aims to develop waste water services in 226 cities.

The government has also planned to provide access to sanitation and introduce more effective water treatment methods in 10,000 villages by 2012.