NEW YORK – A UN report released on Wednesday in New York said 2.4 billion people lack sanitation facilities, including 946 million people who defecate in the open.
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The Progress on Sanitation and Drinking Water report, jointly compiled by UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organisation (WHO), found that seven out of 10 people do not have access to improved sanitation and nine out of 10 people defecate in the open in rural areas.
The report said that worldwide figure was still staggering, in spite of major achievements in the areas of sanitation and safe drinking water.
It said that 2.6 billion people had gained access to clean drinking water and another 2.1 billion people had gained access to improved sanitation since 1990.
The report noted that as at today, no fewer than 1,000 children under five die each day from diarrhoea caused by inadequate water, sanitation and hygiene compared to over 2,000 15 years ago. (dpa/NAN)
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