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The supply of safe drinking water and the provision of sanitation
are management issues that raise concerns of inequitable service
provision, particularly in developing countries. Although several
successful initiatives have been launched to supply safe drinking
water to urban populations, efforts continue to fall short of the
required targets for sustainable development.
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In developing countries, water delivery systems are
plagued by leakages, illegal connections and vandalism, while precious
water resources are squandered through greed and mismanagement. The
World Bank recently estimated that US $600 billion is required to
repair and improve the world's water delivery systems (UNCSD, 1999).
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| Water Supply Highlights, from
The Global Water Supply and Sanitation Assessment 2000 |
- The percentage of people served with some form of improved water
supply rose from 79% (4.1 billion people) in 1990 to 82% (4.9
billion) in 2000. Between 1990 and 2000, approximately 816 million
additional people gained access to water supplies - an improvement
of 3%.
- Two of every five Africans lack access to an improved water
supply. Throughout Africa, rural water services lag far behind
urban services.
- During the 1990s, rural water supply percentage coverage increased
while urban coverage decreased - although the number of people
who lack access to water supplies remained about the same.
- In Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, nearly 1 billion
people in rural areas have no access to improved water supplies.
- To achieve the 2015 targets in Africa, Asia, Latin America and
the Caribbean, water supplies will have to reach an additional
1.5 billion people.
Source: WHO/UNICEF, 2000
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During the 1990s, the greatest reduction in per capita water supply
was in Africa (by 2.8 times), Asia (by two times), and Latin America
and the Caribbean (by 1.7 times).
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The water supplies available to European populations
for that period decreased only by 16% (WHO/UNICEF, 2000). |
| Sanitation Highlights, from
The Global Water Supply and Sanitation Assessment 2000 |
- The proportion of people with access to excreta disposal facilities
increased from 55% (2.9 billion people) in 1990 to 60% (3.6 billion)
in 2000. Between 1990 and 2000, approximately 747 million additional
people gained access to sanitation facilities - although the number
of people who lack access to sanitation services remained roughly
the same.
- At the beginning of 2000, two-fifths of the world's population
(2.4 billion people) lacked access to improved sanitation facilities.
The majority of these people live in Asia and Africa, where fewer
than half of all Asians have access to improved sanitation.
- Sanitation coverage in rural areas is less than half of that
in urban locations, even though 80% of those lacking adequate
sanitation (2 billion people) live in rural areas - some 1.3 billion
in China and India alone.
- In Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, nearly 2
billion people in rural areas have no access to improved sanitation
facilities.
- To achieve 2015 sanitation targets in Africa, Asia, Latin America
and the Caribbean, an additional 2.2 billion people will have
to be provided with sanitation facilities.
- Polluted water is estimated to affect the health of more than
1.2 billion people, and to contribute to the death of an average
15 million children every year. In 1994, WHO estimated the number
of people without access to clean drinking water at 1.3 billion.
By 2000, nearly 1.2 billion people lacked access to clean water,
while 2.4 billion lacked access to adequate sanitation services.
Source: WHO/UNICEF, 2000.
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The lack of access to safe drinking water and sanitation is directly
related to poverty, and in many cases to the inability of governments
to finance satisfactory water and sanitation systems. The direct
and indirect human costs of these failings are enormous, including
widespread health problems, heavy labour (particularly for women,
who are forced to travel long distances to obtain water for their
families), and severe limitations for economic development (Gleick,
1995).
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Improved water and sanitation facilities, on the other
hand, bring valuable benefits for both social and economic development
and poverty alleviation (WHO/UNICEF 2000). |
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