Russia has been put in a list of countries having more than 10 million people deprived of the use of hygienic toilet.
In a report by British charity WaterAid quoted by The Guardian daily on Monday, Russia shares the place in the list with Romania, Turkey, Mexico, Brazil, Egypt, Morocco and other countries.
The organization reminded that about two million people a year — mainly children — die from diarrhoea, chiefly as a consequence of poor sanitation. Overall, 2.6 billion people — or about 40% of the world’s population — are without hygienic toilets.
Aid agencies working in the provision of water and sanitation have suffered a 14% cut in funding globally since 1999, according to WaterAid. “Lack of adequate sanitation is not just a problem of convenience,” the organisation says, “it is also a major health hazard.
”Urban population growth rates in the developing world are vastly outstripping increased sanitation provision. Urban sanitation [may start] deteriorating as slum growth continues apace — a problem that is already of major concern in southern Asia and steadily increasing in Africa.“
”Aid donors do not prioritise sanitation for spending in today’s developing countries, despite sanitation having played a major role in reducing mortality in their own countries,“ the report reads.
