Experts said the WASH budget proposed for fiscal year 2022-23 under the ADP is still not enough to ensure safe sanitation and build environment and capacity.They came up with the comments at a press conference at National Press Club in the capital on Tuesday. The event was jointly arranged by WaterAid along with the Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC), FANSA-BD, FSM Network, Bangladesh Water Integrity Network (BaWin), Sanitation and Water for All, End Water Poverty, MHM Platform, UNICEF and WASH Alliance International.
The implementation of different steps to achieve sustainable development goals by 2030 may slow down because of the inadequate WASH budget, they opined.Speakers stressed proper attention in selecting Annual Development Programme projects and the need to reduce the WASH allocation gap across rural and hard-to-reach areas.
They also identified the current budget falls short in addressing emerging challenges in the remote areas of marginalized communities.An analysis by the Power and Participation Research Center (PPRC), in collaboration with WaterAid, found that the WASH ADP allocation increased by 5.44 percent compared to an overall ADP increase of 7.5 percent. The proposed WASH budget is Tk 118.2 billion out of the total ADP allocation of Tk 2,460.66 billion.
Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman, eminent economist, executive chairman, PPRC and Hossain Ishrath Adib, acting country director of WaterAid, and representatives from WASH networks spoke at the program among other WASH specialists, including journalists and development workers.
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