A SNAPSHOT 2012 UPDATE WATER SUPPLY IN EAST ASIA AND THE PACIFIC

Transcription

1 A SNAPSHOT 212 UPDATE WATER SUPPLY IN EAST ASIA AND THE PACIFIC

2 Foreword In the past 2 decades, child mortality has fallen in East Asia and the Pacific (EAP). In 199, nearly 2.2 million children died before their fifth birthday. By 211, that number has fallen to.6 million. Two factors are primarily responsible for this reduction -- rapidly expanded public health services like immunization, and increased access to safe water. These two regional overviews A Snapshot 212 Update Sanitation & Hygiene in East Asia and the Pacific and A Snapshot 212 Update Water Supply in East Asia and the Pacific, which have been developed based on the latest 212 Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation, show that the East Asia and Pacific region has seen extraordinary improvements in water supply and sanitation. In 21, some 677 million more people had access to improved drinking water than was the case 2 years ago. Some 23 million more people now use improved sanitation facilities. Despite the progress, pneumonia and diarrhoea remain the biggest killers of children under five in the region. These outcomes can be attributed in part to poor sanitation and lack of access to clean water. Most of the preventable child deaths occur in the poorest families. Malnutrition, which remains high, is a contributing factor. Safe water, improved sanitation and hygiene education have a direct impact on the health, the productivity and the economic status of children, as well as their families, and can even be a catalyst to propel households out of poverty. However, around 2 million people still don t have access to improved water and 671 million people in East Asia and the Pacific are still without access to improved sanitation. Even in those countries that are on target to meet the sanitation targets in the MDG s, the gap in access to safe sanitation between urban dwellers and rural populations and between the richest and poorest quintiles is still too large. These reports add to the increasing body of evidence and analysis, from UNICEF and its partners, that show that three critical areas need urgent attention. 1. The significant inequities in sanitation and water coverage need to be addressed. The poorest and the most disadvantaged need access to water and sanitation of a standard that will enable them to live strong and productive lives; and. 2. Open defecation must end. The Sanitation Drive to 215 a call to end open defecation - urges us all to tackle this issue by giving priority support to the poorest and most marginalized populations 3. Water safety must be ensured: Steps must be taken to prevent populations that have access to clean water from slipping back, and water quality must continue to improve. If these can be addressed lives will be saved. Safe drinking water, basic sanitation and hygiene are essential for the health and welfare of individuals and vital for the health and welfare of nations. Economic studies conducted by the WHO and the World Bank over the past 15 years have shown that poor sanitation and hygiene carry high costs to many East Asia and Pacific nations, in terms of Gross Domestic Product and productivity, and that investments in improving sanitation and access to clean water pay high dividends The achievements that have been made are a cause for celebration. They also clearly demonstrate that greater improvements are possible. We must work together to make sure they happen. Lives and futures are dependent on it. Daniel Toole Regional Director UNICEF East Asia and the Pacific A Snapshot of Water Supply in East Asia and the Pacific 212 Update 1

3 Coverage (%) Overview The East Asia and Pacific Region has made good progress in drinking water supply over the last 2 years: The proportion of people using improved water supplies increased by 21 per cent between 199 and 21, a greater rate than in most other regions More than half of the population of the region now have access to piped water on Regional and World Water Coverage Trends the premises East Asia and the Pacific has already met Surface water the MDG water target million more people use improved 24 drinking water than 2 years ago, the improved majority of them in China The majority of people in the region use 31 appropriate household water treatment to 39 improve their drinking water quality However, challenges remain: Almost 2 million people still do not have access to improved water supply in the region Coverage disparities are pronounced in the region: national coverage levels range from as low as per cent (in Papua New Guinea) to over 95 per cent (in Thailand, Malaysia and other countries) East Asia and the Pacific World Total Access to water is inequitable within countries: urban dwellers are more likely to have access to improved water supplies than rural households Poverty levels are also an important factor influencing the use of improved drinking water: poorer households are much less likely to have access than richer households The Pacific sub-region is lagging behind: coverage levels for improved drinking water has actually decreased from 51 per cent in 199 to 5 per cent in Information about this Snapshot This snapshot is produced by the UNICEF Regional Office for East Asia and the Pacific The UNICEF East Asia and Pacific Region encompasses 27 countries; 12 in East Asia and 15 in the Pacific (see last page for listing) Unless otherwise indicated, data in this snapshot is from the WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation 21 dataset, the latest available See page 6 for full citations and credits A Snapshot of Water Supply in East Asia and the Pacific 212 Update 2

4 Rural Drinking Water Coverage (%) Coverage (%) Drinking Water Inequities Urban-rural coverage disparity still exists, but the gap is narrowing The East Asia and Pacific Region urban-rural drinking water gap has shrunk from 37 percentage points in 199 to 13 points in 21 However, there are still significant urban-rural gaps in some countries, notably in Papua New Guinea (54 percentage points between urban and rural), Mongolia (47 points), Timor-Leste (31 points) and Cambodia (29 points) Piped water on the premises is much more common for urban households than for rural households Surface water improved Urban Rural Few people have access to piped water in rural areas Rural Water Coverage Piped Use of improved drinking water in rural areas in 1 East Asia and Pacific countries, compared to regional and world totals, 21, per cent. Full data not available for countries not appearing in this graph (see last page for all data). A Snapshot of Water Supply in East Asia and the Pacific 212 Update 3

5 Coverage (%) Coverage (%) Coverage (%) Coverage (%) Poor households have lower water coverage levels in East Asia and the Pacific The poorest households have lower access to improved drinking water than richer households in many countries (notably in Lao PDR and Indonesia) Disparities are most pronounced for access to piped water supply on the premises (such as in the Philippines where only % of poorest quintile households have piped water compared to 93% of the richest households) Lao PDR MICS Viet Nam MICS 211 Indonesia DHS 27 Philippines DHS 2 Use of piped water on premises and other improved drinking water facilities by wealth quintiles (%). Regional and country averages mask large disparities within countries This equity tree example from Timor-Leste shows that the poorest households in rural areas have much lower coverage levels even than in sub-saharan Africa East Asia 9 World & the Pacific 99 Richest 2% 9 Fiji Urban 96 Thailand 94 Americas & Caribbean 91 China 91 Urban 3 Myanmar 2 Indonesia 77 Richest 2% Rural 61 Sub S Africa 69 Timor-Leste 69 Poorest 2% Urban 64 Cambodia 6 Rural Papua New Guinea 43 Poorest 2% Rural water coverage in Timor-Leste, per cent. Sources: JMP 212 and Timor-Leste DHS, 29 A Snapshot of Water Supply in East Asia and the Pacific 212 Update 4

6 Houesholds practicing treatment method (%) Adequate HWT (%) Water Quality and Household Water Treatment Water Quality Comprehensive data on drinking water quality is not available, however individual studies suggest that both bacteriological and chemical contamination of drinking water supplies is a serious problem in the region Substantial levels of arsenic contamination of water supplies has been found in Cambodia, China, Myanmar and Viet Nam, while in other countries less widespread occurrences have been documented or are probable (see Statistical modeling of global geogenic arsenic contamination in groundwater. Amini et al. 2. Environmental Science and Technology 42(1), ) Household water treatment is widespread in the region In the seven countries where data is available, the majority of households use appropriate household water treatment methods to improve their drinking water; treatment levels are relatively constant across wealth quintiles, and among rural and urban households Household Water Treatment in East Asia 1 1 Population in households reporting the use of appropriate * water treatment methods, per cent (nonweighted average from 7 countries). * Appropriate treatment methods include boiling, bleaching/chlorinating, filtering, and solar disinfecting Sources: MICS and DHS from Indonesia 27, Thailand 25-26, Cambodia 25, Mongolia 25, Philippines 23, Viet Nam 26, Lao PDR 26. No data available from Pacific countries Total Urban Rural Filter Use Trends Example Boiling is still the most common method for treating water in the region, but an increasing number of households are opting for ceramic, sand or other appropriate filters The number of households using non-appropriate methods (such as just allowing water to settle) or not using any treatment method at all is falling in some countries The example from Cambodia illustrates this trend, which is due in part to national filter use promotional programmes Treatment Method Trends in Cambodia Trends in selected household water treatment methods in Cambodia (boiling not shown remains the most common method). Sources: DHS 25 and Ceramic, sand or other filter Stand & settle No treatment 4 A Snapshot of Water Supply in East Asia and the Pacific 212 Update 5

7 Focus on the Pacific Sub-Region The East Asia sub-region has progressed much more than the Pacific sub-region East Asia Urban Rural National Pacific Use of improved water facilities, Pacific sub-region compared to East Asia sub-region, per cent Gains have been made in all UNICEF regions, but not in the Pacific sub-region East Asia sub-region 22 South Asia 19 Sub-Saharan Africa Americas and Caribbean CEE/CIS Middle East & North Africa Pacific sub-region % point change Percentage point gain in national improved water source use, 199 to 21. Pacific and East Asia sub-regions compared to other regions; CEE/CIS is Central, Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States * In this snapshot, Papua New Guinea is in the Pacific sub-region in conformance with MDG classification practices (the MDG Oceania region). This means that coverage levels and progress rates in that country heavily influence sub-regional averages due to its large population relative to Pacific Island Nations. A Snapshot of Water Supply in East Asia and the Pacific 212 Update 6

8 Drinking Water Coverage in East Asia and the Pacific Mongolia DPR Korea China Micronesia Marshall Islands Myanmar Lao PDR Viet Nam Thailand Cambodia Philippines Nauru Kiribati Malaysia Palau Tuvalu Tokelau Less than 5% 5% to 75% 76% to 9% 91% to 1% Indonesia Timor- Leste Papua New Guinea Solomon Islands Vanuatu Fiji Samoa Tonga Cook Islands Niue Insufficient data water supply coverage in East Asia and Pacific countries, 21, national. Only countries in the UNICEF East Asia and Pacific region are shown. This map does not reflect a position by UNICEF on the legal status of any country or territory or the delimitation of any frontiers. Data Sources and Notes Main water supply dataset: from Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation: 212 Update (with supplemental data from wssinfo.org), from WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation Country-specific DHS data: from published Demographic and Household Surveys available at measuredhs.com, from USAID and national statistics bureaus Country-specific MICS data: from published Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys available at childinfo.org, from UNICEF, other UN agencies and national statistics bureaus Cover photo credits, clockwise from top right: UNICEF/NYHQ24-137/Noorani, UNICEF/LAOA2-5596/Holmes, UNICEF/NYHQ26-15/Estey, UNICEF/MGLA27-433/Holmes UNICEF does not warrant that the information contained in this publication is complete and correct and shall not be liable for any damages incurred as a result of its use. Acknowledgements UNICEF thanks Greg Keast, who developed and produced this snapshot under the guidance of Chander Badloe, UNICEF East Asia and the Pacific Regional Office. Special appreciation also to the following reviewers for their valuable inputs: Almud Weitz from the Water and Sanitation Program; James Wicken from WaterAid; Hilda Winartasaputra from Plan International; and Ramesh Bhusal, Therese Dooley, Nguyen Thanh Hien, Libbet Horn- Phathanothai, Dara Johnston, Janine Kandel, Rolf Luyendijk, Nadarajah Moorthy, Henk van Norden, Marjolein Oijevaar, Michael Emerson P. Gnilo and David Parker from UNICEF.. A Snapshot of Water Supply in East Asia and the Pacific 212 Update 7

9 Total Surface Water Total Surface Water Total Surface Water Drinking Water Coverage by Country Country estimates by type of drinking water source 199, 21 Cambodia China Tuvalu Vanuatu Viet Nam Total Country Cook Islands DPR Korea Fiji Indonesia Kiribati Lao PDR Malaysia Marshall Islands Micronesia (Fed. States of) Mongolia Myanmar Nauru Niue Palau Papua New Guinea Philippines Samoa Solomon Islands Thailand Timor-Leste Tokelau Tonga Year Total Population (x 1) 199 9, , ,145, ,341, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,615, ,965, UNICEF East Asia and Pacific Regional Office (EAPRO) 19 Phra Atit Road, Bangkok, 12 Thailand Website: asiapacificinfo@unicef.org Twitter: twitter.com/unicefasiapac Urban Rural National (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) August 212 A Snapshot of Water Supply in East Asia and the Pacific 212 Update