Sanitation target may not be achieved

The nation’s objective of meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015 could remain unfulfilled due to the large number of people still without access to sanitation.

 

Emah Sudjimah, an official from the Public Works Ministry, said over the weekend the government still faced challenges, especially in the sanitation sector, partly due to the low awareness of people and local administrations.

 

According to her, from 4 to 10 percent of the regional budget was allocated to sanitation development. 

 

“Perhaps it is because most local administrations focus only on infrastructure development that is deemed critical to improving their economies,” she told a press briefing ahead of the 3rd East Asia Ministerial Conference on Sanitation and Hygiene (EASAN-3) themed “Sanitation for All: Toward 2015 and Beyond” taking place in Nusa Dua, Bali, from Monday through to Wednesday. 

 

Creating public and political awareness of the importance of sustainable sanitation appears to be one of the key issues to be discussed in the three-day conference. There is a growing perception that infrastructure is the only key to economic growth while in fact economic costs caused by sanitation-related health problems continue to increase and deserve serious attention. 

 

“The reality is that the lack of access to safe drinking water and sanitation services, such as wastewater disposal, has a direct impact on health, which can further affect productivity,” said Emah.

 

In 2010, the proportion of households with proper access to basic sanitation facilities reached 71.5 percent in urban areas, nearly achieving the 2015 target of 76.8 percent that the government has set. 

 

However, only 38.5 percent of households in rural areas have access to basic sanitation facilities, including latrines, swan-neck closets and septic tanks. The figure is projected to reach 55.54 percent in 2015.

 

Public Works Ministry data shows that only 12 cities have urban-scale wastewater treatment plants that are very small. In Malaysia, one of Indonesia’s closest neighboring countries, the proportion of cities with an urban-scale sewerage system stands at 98 percent. 

 

The conference aims to increase commitment among countries in the region to speed up global access to proper sanitation and hygiene. East Asia is one of the few regions expected to achieve the MDG sanitation target. 

 

Citing the UNICEF-WHO Joint Monitoring Program Survey, the Health Ministry’s chief of environmental health directorate Wilfred H. Purba said in East Asia, the MDG sanitation target for 2015 was 68 percent, and that it was projected to be achieved. Additional sanitation coverage of eight percent above the initial target might also be achieved. 

 

“It has been widely debated whether the target is truly achievable, as many countries in the region including Indonesia still lack access to sanitation services,” he said.

 

More than 671 million people living in East Asia have poor sanitation facilities and more than 100 million people continue to practice open defecation, which may pose health risks. 

 

More than 450 million diarrhea cases occur every year, and the number of deaths related to sanitation and water-borne disease continues to increase by 150,000 every year. On sanitation, huge disparities among East Asian countries persist. In some countries, 95 percent of the population has access to sanitation but in others less than 30 percent of the population access basic sanitation facilities.