Residents will not be free to openly defecate in Sindh by 2025

Provincial govt’s sanitation policy includes eradication of open defecation, provision of latrines


Hafeez Tunio August 04, 2017
The provincial government aims to improve hygiene and sanitation in Sindh. PHOTO: REUTERS

KARACHI: In order to provide better sanitation services and ensure that the entire population of Sindh has access to a safely-managed sanitation service and sanitary environment, the provincial government has finalised its sanitation policy with the motto ‘Saaf Suthee Sindh’, which translates as Neat and Clean Sindh.

This is the first time the provincial government has drafted a policy to deal with these issues. Under this policy, the government has promised that it will eradicate ‘open defecation’ in Sindh by 2025.

"Around 70% villages in 13 high-priority districts will achieve the status of being ‘open defecation-free’ by 2020," reads the policy prepared by the provincial public health and engineering department. It adds that 100% households in Sindh will have access to and use sanitary latrines by 2025, while 70% of rural households in high-priority districts will achieve this by 2020.

The government’s main agenda is to strengthen and implement a liquid water management system with sewer lanes and covered or improved drains with 85% coverage of urban areas and 60% coverage in rural areas.

Jhang in the grip of faulty sanitation and sewerage conditions

The government has said it will create and develop a wastewater treatment mechanism that will cover 75% of urban areas and 40% rural areas by 2025. It has also promised to implement an integrated solid water management system with 100% coverage in urban areas and 60% coverage in rural areas by 2025.

The policy aims to completely eradicate unhygienic practices in the province, including poor disposal of excreta, foul water and solid waste. "Safely-managed sanitation services are a fundamental right of all persons in Sindh. It should be ensured through enhancing access to marginalised and low-income areas with equitable distribution of resources," the policy states, recognising that inadequate and unsafe water supply and sanitation are the major causes for diarrhoea and nutritional deficiency in children. This consequently contributes towards child mortality, safe drinking water supply and sanitation, which should be integrated in health, nutrition and school health programmes.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, Public Health Engineering Minister Fayyaz Butt said that the government will increase access to high-quality nutrition-sensitive services, including access to clean water, sanitation facilities and hygiene. "We will also integrate and focus on key hygiene actions such as safe drinking water, hand washing with soap, safe disposal of excreta, food hygiene and essential components in all nutrition programmes," he said, adding that this policy will promote a community-led approach to strengthen demand for safely managed improved sanitary conditions that emerge from local communities.

Complying with SC orders, Sindh doubles water, sanitation budget

"Multi stakeholder partnerships and collaborations comprising of citizens, the government, civil society, non-governmental organisations, donors, academia and the media must be encouraged to maximise the synergies in designing and implementing interventions" he urged.

In the policy, the government has also focused on sustainability of its services. One section of the policy states that the government will launch a mobilisation campaign, engaging lady health workers, union council staff, non-governmental organisations and the private sector. The policy will be instituted gradually and will involve the community being responsible for constructing lanes and neighbourhood-level sewers on a self-help basis. The government will instead focus on trunks, disposal and treatment units.

The role of women in the policy has been discussed a number of times, stating that women will be an integral component of the behavioural change communication strategies and project planning, implementing and monitoring through capacity development and social mobilisation of relevant stakeholders. "An independent monitoring and evaluation system will be established and maintained to track progress under the sanitation agenda," states the policy draft.

Federal approach

Pakistan Approach to Total Sanitation (PATS) has been developed under the federal climate change division. It was developed to be implemented in the country with the support of the provincial governments. It aims to promote participatory hygiene and attain 100% adequate draining and wastewater treatments but so far nothing has been done and no steps have been taken to further this goal.

DC monitors sanitation situation

Under the policy, the government has also introduced School Led Total Solution and Community Led Total Solution methods, which engage schoolchildren and the community to resolve water and sanitation issues in the province.

COMMENTS (2)

Rahul | 6 years ago | Reply As expected no comment on this topic by Pakistanis.
bashir gul | 6 years ago | Reply What a joke. They can't clean the garbage of Karachi city and dreaming of 2025. That's actually the plan till 2025 to swindle all the budget.
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