Maravi

Don't be uncomfortable to talk about sanitation or toilets, urges Mase

Don't be uncomfortable to talk about sanitation or toilets, urges Mase
By Florence Bupe, Chibaula Silwamba, Joan Chirwa and Prudence M
Thursday March 20, 2008 [03:00]

Poor and indiscriminate disposal of waste has had a toll on the dignity and development of the country, local government minister Sylvia Masebo has observed.

Speaking during the commemoration of this year’s World Water Day under the theme ‘sanitation’, Masebo said there was increased need for appropriate disposal and management of solid waste by all stakeholders.

She said the subject of sanitation had continued to be underdiscussed, thereby inhibiting progress in the sub-sector.

“If current trends of inadequate and inappropriate attention to sanitation continue, there will be untold misery in the nation as the number of people without basic sanitation will continue to rise with children continuing to pay the most price in lost lives, missed schooling and poverty,” she said.

Masebo directed all stakeholders to prioritise sanitation issues.
“I would like all related programmes to ensure that there are proper linkages with sanitation,” she said.

Masebo lamented the low levels of sanitation coverage, saying sanitation was an important aspect of human life that had been neglected.

“The topic of sanitation or toilets often makes people uncomfortable. The reluctance to talk about sanitation and the ‘don’t care’ attitude are some of the reasons for the poor coverage of sanitation in the country,” Masebo said. “This is why as a country, one of the lowest service level coverage among many services is that of sanitation.”

And a Kanyama resident has lamented the continued inadequacy of sanitation facilities in the area and called on the government to increase the allocation of funds for the improvement of sanitation service provision.

In an interview, Charles Mhango said most peri-urban areas had continued to suffer a serious shortage of proper sanitation facilities and this was negatively affecting development in various aspects.

“There has been so much talk about plans to provide better sanitation facilities, especially toilets, but practically, no change has been seen. Most residents here still rely on poorly constructed pit latrines, which actually pose a serious health hazard,” Mhango said.

Meanwhile, Devolution Trust Fund (DTF) manager Samuel Gong’a has disclosed that a total of K9 billion would be disbursed this year to fund about 10 water projects. He said DTF would cover an additional 200,000 peri-urban and rural dwellers in terms of clean water provision by September 2008.

DTF is a basket fund under the administration of the National Water Supply and Sanitation Council (NWASCO) that was established by the government to assist commercial utilities extend and improve water and sanitation service provision in low income urban areas.

Gong’a disclosed that cooperating partners had pledged and availed funds for the implementation of the said projects.

“We have commitments amounting to about K64 billion. The German Development bank KfW has pledged K33 billion, and the European Union has committed K23 billion, while K8.4 billion will come from DANIDA,” Gong’a said.

And Southern Water and Sewerage Company (SWSC) public relations officer Liversage Mulinda has said high levels of vandalism to water infrastructure was hindering development in the improvement of sector service delivery.

In a message to commemorate the World Water Day, Mulinda stated that the high vandalism levels were hindering the achievement of water-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

“The concept of community integration or indeed community involvement is critical at all levels and with all categories of people and institutions as each has a specific but important complimentary role to play in achieving the UN goal on sanitation,” Mulinda stated.

“Experience at the water utility level has revealed that the problem of vandalism and other negative vices that negate the little progress that has so far been made in addressing issues of sanitation in the Southern Province are mainly due to the local communities not having a sense of ownership to the water and sewerage facilities.”

A huge percentage of the country’s peri- urban and rural population lack access to proper sanitation, resorting to the use of ‘flying toilets’ and open defecation practices which pose a serious health and environmental hazard.

The world today commemorates the World Water Day under the theme ‘Sanitation’ in support of the United Nation’s declaration of 2008 as the International Year of Sanitation.
The World Water Day is observed on March 22 every year, but this year’s commemorations have been brought forward by virtue of the day falling on a holiday.


The United Nations is working in collaboration with various organisations in different countries to increase the number of people with access to proper sanitation.

Currently, an estimated 2.6 billion people lack access to proper sanitation, resulting in approximately 1.5 million diarrhoea related deaths which could be prevented through the availability of sanitation facilities.

Labels: LOCAL GOVERNMENT, SYLVIA MASEBO

posted by MrK @ 3:49 PM