Continuous and sustained efforts are imperative to ensure safe drinking water to all in addition to improving sanitation system. This was observed by Mahboob Elahi, Managing Director, Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) here on Saturday.
In his message on World Water Day (WWD), he said that this year also coincides with the International Year of Sanitation-2008. "This provides us an opportunity to collectively work to meet the challenges of water and sanitation that affect almost one out of every three people in our cities, towns and villages", he said and added that poor sanitation combined with lack of safe drinking water and inadequate hygiene contributes to the morbidity and morality especially amongst poor and other vulnerable groups.
It severely impedes their capacity for healthy and productive living, he said and added that children, especially girls, are forced to stay out of school, while hygiene-related diseases keep adults from engaging in productive work.
He said that successive governments in Pakistan are committed to the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), which also envisions halving the proportion of people living without access to basic sanitation by the year 2015.
He said that Faisalabad, like other metropolitan cities of Punjab still lacks adequate water supply and sanitation services and in case, the present trend continues, it will not be possible to meet the MDGs by the year 2015.
He feared that there are estimates that if the present rate of provision of these services was not accelerated in the near future, this target may be delayed by another 10 to 15 years.
The MD Wasa said that Wasa Faisalabad is cognisant of this commitment and taking all necessary measures to improve the quality and quantity of water supply and sanitation coverage in this city with the active support of provincial government and the citizens.
The financial outlays for this purpose have been increased and presently schemes of about Rs 1.5 billion are under implementation during this financial year. He said that several mega projects for the augmentation of water supply at an estimated cost of Rs 3.0 billion are also in the pipeline.
He said that WWD provides us an opportunity to renew our commitment to these noble objectives and bring these issues to the attention of government and citizenry to focus on these issues, not only this year but on a continuing basis. He further said that we should also create awareness among masses about the prudent use of available water resources and hoped that press would also play its rule in achieving this national task.