Members of Civil Society Network here on Tuesday announced the launch of a campaign highlighting sanitation issues. It aims to mobilize relevant bodies to accelerate efforts for proper accessibility of water and sanitation facilities for the entire population in the country.
The campaign titled: "Keep Your Promises on Sanitation" was formally launched by Integrated Regional Support Programme (IRSP), a non-governmental organisation with the support of WaterAid, Plan International Pakistan along with other civil society organisations of the country. The drive aims to establish a broad-based civil society and citizens' alliance for creation of a momentum to improve governance in the sanitation sectors, said IRSP Executive Director, and Convenor FANSA Pakistan, Syed Shah Nasir Khisro, while addressing a press conference here at the press club.
He further stated that the campaign was simultaneously launched in regional states, including Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan. "It would be carried on in five major cities of the country, including Islamabad, Quetta, Lahore, Karachi and Peshawar, he added.
Explaining the key objectives of the year-long awareness drive, he stated that an alliance would constitute a network of civil society at both the national and province level in the country, which was aimed at highlighting the needs of sanitation and other neglected issues in the sector.
The campaign, he said, would also emphasis on government and relevant bodies would allocate sufficient financing to overcome growing sanitation issues. The research, collection of evidence, mobilisation of community, parliamentarians, and lobbying relevant quarter on the subject matter are the other major areas of this drive, he maintained.
About the dismal condition of the sanitation system, Mr Khisro said that nearly 94 million people, which are about 52 per cent of the total population of country, did not have access to basic sanitation facilities. Similarly, he pointed out that around 23 per cent of the population, which is estimated to be approximately 40 million people do not have access to latrines.
He said that the situation was alarming with huge disparity between rural and urban areas in sanitation facilities. Around 94 million people were not provided better sanitation facilities as only 75 million of the total population lived in the rural areas. He stated that Pakistan is the second highest countries with a high mortality ratio of children below the age of five years in the South Asian states. He indicated that the total economic impact of neglecting sanitation was nearly US $5.7billion per annum, which is around 3.9 per cent of total GDP of the country. Putting forward proposals and suggestions, he demanded the allocation of adequate funds for improvement of sanitation system.