Speakers discussing at a 'Civil Society and Multi Stakeholder Dialogue: Preparation for FMM in Bangladesh' at YWCA Bhaban in the city on Tuesday ahead of the SWA Finance Ministers' Meeting (FMM) that will be held in Washington DC on April 13-19.
Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) organized 'Civil Society and Multi-Stakeholder Dialogue: Preparation for FMM in Bangladesh' at YWCA Bhaban in the city held Tuesday ahead of the SWA Finance Ministers' Meeting (FMM) that will be held in Washington DC on April 13-19.
The FMM will be hosted by and convened in partnership with the World Bank Water Global Practice. SWA regional coordinator for Asia and Pacific Siddhartha Das and SWA CSO representative of South Asia and Research Director of Development Organization of the Rural Poor-DORP Mohammed Zobair Hasan made two presentations.
SWA partners include government, civil society, research and learning, external support and private sector. Referring to a survey by UNICEF India, Siddartha Das said each of the family member can save health expenditure of Tk 50,000 a year only by using safe water and sanitation.
The same theory can be applied for Bangladesh too as the social context of India and Bangladesh is almost same. Special guest and chief engineer of department of public health engineering (DPHE) Saifur Rahman said the basic water coverage in Bangladesh has reached to 98 per cent in the MICS report.
But safely managed water has to be supplied to each doorstep to attain SDG which is challenging in this social and structural context. The sanitation target is same-safely managed sanitation with no use of shared latrine - where Bangladesh lags behind despite progress in reduction of open defecation. Faecal sludge management (FSM) and solid waste management have to be addressed together to ensure WASH for all.
Bangladesh has been working on FSM for the last one and half year with support from Melinda and Gates Foundation. He also informed that 10 per cent of the total water is used for drinking and household activities while 90 per cent is used for irrigation and other purpose. LGD Additional secretary Zahirul Islam who was present as the chief guest said the safe water sources have been destroyed by all.
Still the government has formed a national river conservation commission to formulate the third master plan to prevent the encroachment and pollution of the country's five rivers and increase their navigability. LGRD minister Tazul Islam is the head of the commission.
Latest News