Photo credit: Gates Foundation
SANITATION FOR POLICYMAKERS
19 November 2013
SANITATION FOR POLICYMAKERS
MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS
The world is not on track to meet MDG sanitation target
At the current rate, the target will not be met until 2049
Half the population in developing regions is still without adequate sanitation
Lack of sanitation puts the other MDGs in jeopardy
Photo credit: runran
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SANITATION FOR POLICYMAKERS
POOR SANITATION HAS ECONOMIC COSTS
Photo credit: Gates Foundation
• Investments in sanitation yield an average return of $9 for every $1 invested through:
• Reduced health costs
• Improved human productivity
• Higher education levels
• Reduced environmental degradation
• Poverty reduction
• Poor sanitation costs India 6.4% of its GDP
SANITATION FOR POLICYMAKERS
POOR SANITATION HAS ECONOMIC COSTS
Photo credit: Heather Arney /Water.org
• In developing countries, half of hospital beds are filled with people suffering from
diseases associated with poor water, sanitation and hygiene
• Achieving the MDG target would add 200 million school days per year
• Countries can build resilience by reducing their infectious disease burden
SANITATION FOR POLICYMAKERS
SANITATION SUSTAINS CLEAN ENVIRONMENTS
1.1 billion people still defecate in the open
In the developing world, roughly 90% of sewage is discharged untreated into
rivers, lakes and coastal areas
Photo credit: Chrissy Olson
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SANITATION FOR POLICYMAKERS
SANITATION SUSTAINS CLEAN ENVIRONMENTS
Photo credit: WeSustainLife.org
Photo credit: Christy Gillmore
• Poor water quality threatens fishing industries
• Lack of availability of clean water can hamper industrial development
SANITATION FOR POLICYMAKERS
SANITATION SUSTAINS TOURISM
Photo credit: WeSustainLife.org
Photo credit: Paolo Margari
• Dead zones have now grown to cover 245,000 km of the marine environment
• Poor sanitation practices that pollute environments deter tourists
• Ecotourism can decrease due to environmental degradation
SANITATION FOR POLICYMAKERS
SANITATION IS A HUMAN RIGHT
Photo credit: WeSustainLife.org
Photo credit: Water.org
• The most disadvantaged in society are worst affected by inadequate sanitation
• In July 2010, the UN General Assembly declared safe and clean drinking water and
sanitation to be a human right
www.sanitationdrive2015.org
Leanne Burney, UN Secretary-General's Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation
Email: burneyl@un.org
Therese Dooley, UNICEF
Email: tdooley@unicef.org
Amanda Marlin, Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council
Email: amanda.marlin@wsscc.org
Corinne Schuster-Wallace, United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health
Email: corinne.schusterwallace@unu.edu
SANITATION FOR POLICYMAKERS
Become a global leader – make sanitation a priority!