Léa Gombert is a first year student majoring in Strategic Management at Desautels. She aspires to remodel the business industry into a more sustainable and socially responsible field. Apart from that, she is very interested in human rights, literature of all sort and fashion. Vaanathi Rajasingham is a first year student pursuing a major in Sociology and a minor in International Development. She is interested in learning about sustainable development solutions, global poverty, and history. What is World Water Day? What is the importance of W.A.S.H.? The World Water Day occurs every year on March 22nd and was created by the United Nations General Assembly during its Conference in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. This decision was made in response to an alarming reality: water was, and still is, becoming more and more rare. In fact, nowadays, 2.2 billion people still lack access to safe drinking water, and this number could rise to 5 billion people in 2050 according to a 2018 UN report. Therefore, humanitarian associations use the World Water Day as a way to celebrate water and raise awareness on the global lack of access to safe water. In parallel to the World Water Day, a program on “Global Water, Sanitation and Hygiene” under the name of W.A.S.H. was also established by UNICEF to centralize its actions taken to face hygienic issues related to poor water access. Through the W.A.S.H. program, UNICEF puts in place facilities to ease access to potable water in school, healthcare centers and in urban areas.
What is the status of sanitation, fresh drinking water, etc. in Afghanistan? Despite the fact that 67% of Afghans now have access to clean drinking water thanks to a decade of immense progress, children in Afghanistan are still exposed to fatal diseases due to inadequate sanitation. Diarrheal diseases remain the second most common cause of death in young Afghan children, and 2 out of every 5 children experience stunted growth as a result of water and sanitation related issues. In addition to inaccessible and often unsafe drinking water, only 43% of Afghan families have proper toilets and latrines that hygienically prevent human waste from coming into human contact. The burden of unsafe drinking water extends beyond a child’s home life and impacts his or her capacity to succeed in school. For Fatima, an 8-year-old girl in Afghanistan, fetching clean drinking water for her family required a two-hour journey back and forth to the nearest water tap. Children like Fatima have spent hours of their childhood carrying heavy jerry cans to collect water instead of playing or completing schoolwork. Moreover, the burden of collecting clean water disproportionately affects women and young girls in Afghanistan, which is an added strain to their already unequal access to proper education. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic and over two decades of sustained conflict in Afghanistan, protecting children’s access to safe and sanitary water facilities has been met with challenges. However, UNICEF’s continuous work restores hope that in the coming decades, we can increase water services to the resilient communities of Afghanistan through our collective efforts. What has UNICEF done to help? UNICEF’s main focus concerning water in Afghanistan is reaching children with proper sanitation and hygiene. To do so, the association has focused on building latrines and drinking water systems in schools and public places all around the country. Not only do these facilities improve the overall access for young girls and boys to potable water, but it also indirectly encourages families to bring their children to school in an attempt to protect them from diseases like diarrhea. Overall, thanks to multiple initiatives, nearly 122,000 Afghans gained access to safe water through UNICEF support in 2020. What are some of UNICEF’s policy solutions related to this issue? The reality of international solutions to the global water crisis has not always been marked by flawless execution—a history of failed projects, disease outbreaks, and a lack of community involvement has made some global W.A.S.H. programs insufficient for the most vulnerable communities. However, UNICEF policies are increasingly integrating the sustainability check tool and other accountability checks to ensure proper implementation of W.A.S.H. projects. UNICEF policies for the installation of water and sanitation systems are prioritizing long-term operations by establishing climate-resilient solutions, strong infrastructure, and funding for continuous maintenance. In addition, UNICEF’s Water Game Plan seeks to “define and prioritize the most appropriate programmatic pathways” that country offices can follow to increase their water services. Finally, an increase in community-led initiatives encourages more detailed attention to local needs within policy solutions and helps satisfy the UN’s 6th Sustainable Development Goal. Such policies will ensure that communities with insufficient access to water will not become dependent on aid but will instead become equipped with the tools and agency to lead themselves. Clean water is a basic and universal human right, and no child should have to struggle without it. If you would like to support UNICEF’s efforts to solve the global water crisis, check out these sources to learn more about W.A.S.H. or to donate to the cause! World Water Day: https://www.worldwaterday.org/ UNICEF’s W.A.S.H. Program: https://www.unicef.org/wash UNICEF Donation Page: https://secure.unicef.ca/page/31858/donate/1
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AboutThis blog features insights from MSFU members on UN-sponsored days, club events, & the emergency fund. Archives
March 2024
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