MDGs to SDGs: Water and sanitation impact in Bangladesh
It has been estimated that a minimum of 7.5 liters of water per person per day is required in the home for drinking and personal hygiene
Tamanna Majid
One of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) was half of the population would get water and sanitation by 2015. But at the end of year 2015 when MDG deadline approached, access of safe drinking water and basic sanitation was not available to the most of people. Without considering the root cause and country context, the UN set targets and goals to improve the poor peoples lives. As a result, MDGs could achieve some of their goals but not all. So, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) need to ensure access to affordable and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all because health is a part of fundamental human rights to fulfill and make sustainable. Various literature and reports also show that, water and sanitation play vital role on health and health has a tremendous impact on economic development especially on developing country like Bangladesh.
It has been estimated that a minimum of 7.5 liters of water per person per day is required in the home for drinking and personal hygiene. Inadequate or polluted water can cause many diseases like diarrheas, dysenteries, typhoid fever, guinea worm, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis E, Dengue, malaria, etc. The World Health Organization (WHO) in 2000 reported that in every 15 seconds a child dies from diseases due to poor water, sanitation and hygiene. Most of the diarrheal cases are caused by unsafe drinking water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene. Once diarrhea was the number one leading causes of child death in Bangladesh though the situation is now improved but still a number of children and adult people are affected and die by this disease. Several studies have documented that significant positive effect of water supply and sanitation infrastructure can reduce diarrhea. Moreover, improved water and sanitation has been shown to lower the health risks related to dysenteries, typhoid fever, guinea worm, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis E, Dengue, malaria and other water related diseases. Sanitation infrastructure and improved water supply are complementarities. Improved water supply has no effect on health if improved sanitation is not present. A growing body of evidence indicates that access to safe drinking-water, sanitation and hygiene services has an important positive impact on nutrition. A community given access to proper sanitation will have improved living conditions, with increased health and well-being and economic productivity. Not only does proper sanitation reduce the burden of disease related to other major health issues by reducing the average stress level for the immune system, and thus strengthening the immune response to new infections. It also provides secondary benefits such as increasing the economic productivity of communities and people. Poor farmers and wage earners are less productive due to illness, health systems are overwhelmed and national economies suffer. Without WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene) sustainable development is impossible. Improved water and sanitation can also improve local environment. For instance, the absence of open defecation can greatly enhance the local environment. In urban areas, sanitation management at both household and city-wide level improves the environment because of pit latrines or a piped waste disposal to a sewage treatment plant. Improved sanitation removes stagnant water pooling, polluted water and poor drainage and consequently this reduces the number of rats, flies and mosquitoes in the area. Improved environment can attract people and it is an opportunity to start different income generating activities and benefit the local economy.
Inadequate and polluted water supply and sanitation can affect health and economic development as well as GDP growth both directly and indirectly. With improved access of water and sanitation in 2015 GDP growth of Bangladesh is increased from 2003. Improved water supply, water resource management and sanitation boost countries economic growth and contribute greatly to poverty reduction, increased production and productivity. As people get the safe access of water and sanitation, they become less sick and more productive. Reliable and sufficient water supply reduces both public and private investment risk and develops business which allows individuals and households to explore new livelihood opportunities as well as productivity and venture in new market. As an agricultural country, Bangladesh to some extent depended on health and water supply. Though it is not provided immediate economic growth but it helps to secure future economic expansions. Some economists have argued that, the primary benefits from water supply and sanitation are related to health and timesaving. In some area of Bangladesh till today, accessibility, security and the social status conferred by ownership of a latrine. There is a nonmonetary costs consist of resource use, such as the time spent on taking care of patients, fetching water or using unimproved latrines; they can also be expressed in financial units using shadow prices. By improving these two of the most important sectors of development, shadow prices can be reduced and people can do more productive work.
Development of community water supply and sanitation results in improved health, economic and environmental conditions. To achieve sustainable development goal different targets of the SDGs, Bangladesh government should take into consideration like ending open defecation, address water scarcity and substantially reduce the number of people suffering from water scarcity, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, increasing recycling and safe reuse of water globally. The country also should focus on integrated water resources management at all levels, protect and restore water-related ecosystems including mountains, forests, wetlands, rivers, aquifers and lakes, support and strengthen the participation of local communities in improving water and sanitation management. Expand international cooperation and capacity-building support to developing countries in water- and sanitation-related activities and programmes, including water harvesting, desalination, water efficiency, wastewater treatment, recycling and reuse of technologies would indeed bear immense value in this regard.
The writer is a Researcher at James P Grant School of Public Health
