Press Release/18 February 2008

Improved hygiene behaviors and access to toilets will lower child mortality rates, reduce malnutrition and infection rates.

The Department of Health (DOH) today launched the observance of the International Year of Sanitation as declared by the United Nations General Assembly that recognized the importance of sanitation to all of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The country’s MDG for the year 2015 is to ensure that 86.8% of the population will have access to safe water and 73.8% of the population will have access to a sanitary toilet facility.

“Even halfway through 2015, we can already say that we have made considerable progress in as far as poverty reduction, nutrition, gender equality, reducing child mortality, combating HIV/AIDS, malaria, & other diseases”, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said, adding that access to safe water supply and to toilets have increased.

Based on the 2006 Field Health Service Information System of the DOH, safe water supply in the country reached 83% while sanitation coverage is at 75.4%.

“The state of our water and sanitation coverage is reflected by the leading causes of morbidity and mortality, with diarrhea still ranking as the number 1 or 2 cause of morbidity for the past 20 years and one of the top five causes of child mortality”, Duque revealed.

Thus, the declaration of this year as ‘International Year of Sanitation’ is seen as government’s recognition of the critical importance of sanitation in the country’s development goals.

As part of this year’s observance, there will be a National Search for the Barangay with the Best Sanitation Practices where local government units will showcase their best examples of water supply, provision of sanitary toilet facilities and other initiatives related to environmental sanitation.

“We would like to challenge our partners, such as the local government units and other stakeholders, to work together to come up and implement sustainable water and sanitation programs to make further impact on economic growth and poverty reduction”, the health chief concluded.