WATER AND SANITATION

At the 2003 G8 summit in Evian, the G8 committed to a Water Action Plan that was to ‘give high priority in Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocation to sound water and sanitation proposals’. This plan was referenced again at the 2005 and 2008 G8 Summits. Despite this attention, the G8 has set no quantitative targets in the sector. Improvements in access to clean water and sanitation serve as a catalyst for progress in almost every other area of development, providing the foundation for good health, education and economic productivity.

• In fact, globally 4,100 children die daily from diarrhoeal diseases, which are spread through lack of clean water, poor sanitation and hygiene.
• Despite the critical importance of this sector, progress towards increasing access to clean water and sanitation has been slow, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and investments in this sector by the G7 have grown slowly since 2004.
• Sub-Saharan Africa has a large disparity in access to water and sanitation between urban and rural dwellers: access to improved sanitation in urban areas is 42%, compared with just 24% for rural areas. Water supply coverage for urban areas is 81%, compared with just 46% in rural areas.