By Alinafe Nyanda:
Government has said it is committed towards improving sanitation and hygiene as one way of achieving the currentSustainable Development Goal number 6.2.
Among other things the goal urges countries to attain access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation paying attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations by 2063.
Speaking during the official certification of Traditional Authority Likoswe from Chiradzulo as an open defecation free area on Tuesday, deputy minister of health Halima Daud said the development will help to improve the health status of all people in long run.
According to Daud government in 2008 adopted the Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) with an aim of making the country open defecation free (ODF) by promoting sanitation and hygiene in the communities, saying its primarily objective is to reduce sanitation related diseases.
She said: “Maintaining the sanitation and hygiene is central to increasingly quality of life and years of healthy life.Globaly, 25 % of all deaths and 52 of total diseases burden can be attributed to sanitation related factors.
“The government recognizes that promotion of sanitation and hygiene requires collective efforts from all stakeholders by ensuring that the diseases transmission route is interrupted.”
The deputy minister therefore called upon all concerned stakeholders to join government efforts in promoting sanitation and hygiene in the communities so that the disease burden estimated at 52% is reduced to minimal levels.
Country Director for Water for People, Chimwe Chiluzi said as an organization, they exist to provide safe and reliable water as well as sanitation and hygiene and are in Chiradzulo to cerebrate the achievement the organization together with its partners have achieved at traditional authority Likoswe in the district.
“Before the innervations they were other things that were not be done right ,a lot of households had no latrines ,hygiene promotion wasn’t desirable access to water supply was not at the currently level,” said Chiluzi.
Traditional Authority Likoswe joins 173 chiefs in the country who have attained the same ODF status.
The three years project is being implemented by Water for People Organization with support from World Vision and other stakeholders.
