Asia-Pacific, Development & Aid, Environment, Featured, Food & Agriculture, Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), Headlines, Health, Natural Resources, Poverty & SDGs, Regional Categories, TerraViva United Nations, Water & Sanitation NEW DEHLI, Aug 28 2018 (IPS) – At New Delhi’s Savda Ghevra slum settlement, waterborne diseases have become less frequent thanks to solar-powered water ATMs that were installed here as a social enterprise venture three years ago.
“The water is cheap, reliable and fresh-tasting,” Saeeda, a mother of three who lives close to an ATM, tells IPS.
It means she pays 4.5 Rupees (about 6 US cents) for 15 litres of pure drinking water.
Over the last 25 years India’s ministry of new and renewable energy, a GGGI partner, has developed specialised programmes for both drinking water as well as irrigation systems using solar water pumping systems of which there are now an estimated 15,000 units.
Sarvajal Piramal is not the only group that has set up solar-powered water ATMs in New Delhi or other parts of Delhi.
“This is the kind of decentralised, neighbourhood solutions that the Global Green Growth Initiative (GGGI) is interested in,” the Netherlands-based group’s deputy director and water sector lead, Peter Vos, tells IPS.
As a predominantly agricultural country, with the world’s largest irrigated area serviced by some 26 million groundwater pumps mostly run on diesel or electricity, GGGI is keenly interested in India’s plans to switch to the use of solar power for irrigation.
Under India’s National Solar Mission programme, farmers are now supported with capital cost subsidies for solar pump systems.
In fact, the Indian government has plans to export solar pumping systems and expertise to countries interested in greener alternatives for irrigation.
Over the last 25 years India’s ministry of new and renewable energy, a GGGI partner, has developed specialised programmes for both drinking water as well as irrigation systems using solar water pumping systems of which there are now an estimated 15,000 units.

The number of people affected by unsafe drinking water in the city of Basra in Iraq’s south has exceeded 14,000, Basra’s Health Department Director General Riyadh Abdul-Ameer said in a statement on Monday.
BAGHDAD (UrduPoint News / Sputnik – 27th August, 2018) The number of people affected by unsafe drinking water in the city of Basra in Iraq’s south has exceeded 14,000, Basra’s Health Department Director General Riyadh Abdul-Ameer said in a statement on Monday.
Last week, media reported that 4,000 patients had been hospitalized due to diseases contracted from polluted drinking water.
"The number [of people] affected by [water] pollution in Basra reached over 14,000," the statement said.
For years, Basra residents have been struggling with increasingly salty water in the region, with desalinization facilities failing to provide residents with enough potable water.
The lack of fresh water also impacted the supply of electricity in the region as high salinity levels prevented power plants from operating properly.
Over recent months, the situation with access to drinking water in the country’s southern provinces has been exacerbated due to extremely high temperatures (122 degrees Fahrenheit in some areas).
In July and early August, a series of protests against the disruptions in the operation of Iraqi public utilities took place.
The protesters, in particular, demanded that authorities put an end to the irregularities in the water and electricity systems, as well as address the issue of unemployment.

The people of Bisuram Para in Hailakandi district of Assam have no access to safe drinking water even after 72 years of independence.
Hailakandi It has been 72 years of independence, but still there are many places in the country which are yet to be developed .
Bisuram Para in Hailakandi district of Assam is one such place here people still don’t get clean water to drink.
The people of Bisuram Para under Gharmura-Bagcherra Gaon Panchayat in South Hailakandi Development Block have no access to safe drinking water even after 72 years of independence.
Located in a remote part of the district and inhabited mostly by the Reang community, the fruits of development are yet to percolate down to ground zero.
Feeling incensed by the problems confronting the community, leading citizen Shivram Reang on behalf of the residents of Bisuram Para, dashed off a letter to Deputy Commissioner Adil Khan urging him to take steps to solve the drinking water problem by sanctioning a water supply scheme.
“We are living in a very interior zone that where government facility have never (been) implemented so far till date.
The main big problem that we are facing is that we have no pure drinking water.
Using such impure water may lead us to various critical diseases,” said Reang, urging Khan to use his good offices to sanction a water supply scheme for the inhabitants of Bisuram Para.
As a short term measure, Choudhury said the department would explore ways to provide drinking water facility through installation of hand pumps and ring wells.

London – Nearly half the world’s schools lack clean drinking water, toilets and handwashing facilities, putting millions of children at risk of disease, experts warned on Monday.
Almost 900 million children have to contend with a lack of basic hygiene facilities during their education, putting their health at risk and meaning some have to miss school.
"You can’t have a quality learning environment without these basics," said Dr Rick Johnston of the World Health Organisation, a lead researcher on the project.
"Children may not come to school at all if there’s no toilets … Then, when they are at school, they are not going to at their very best if they not able to use a decent toilet or if they are not properly hydrated."
It found nearly a third of primary and secondary schools lacked a safe and reliable drinking water supply, affecting nearly 570 million children.
Just over a third of schools lacked adequate toilet facilities, affecting more than 620 million children.
Sub-Saharan Africa, East and Southeast Asia had some of the worst facilities.
"It’s deeply shocking," Tim Wainwright, the chief executive of charity WaterAid, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
More than a third of girls in South Asia miss school during their periods, often because they lack access to toilets or pads, according to a WaterAid and UNICEF study earlier this year.
Thomson Reuters Foundation

Climate Change, Development & Aid, Environment, Featured, Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), Green Economy, Headlines, Poverty & SDGs, Water & Sanitation JOHANNESBURG, Aug 27 2018 (IPS) – Access to safe water for drinking and an adequate supply of water for other purposes is challenging in the rural areas of Vanuatu.
A new project, that uses solar water pumping technology, will save time and energy for rural women whose task it is to collect and make water more accessible to their communities.
“Vanuatu is one of the small island states in the Pacific region that faces climate change because they are very vulnerable.
But given that, there is a lot of potential for sustainable development,” says Dr. André Weidenhaupt, director-general at the department for environment in Luxembourg’s ministry for sustainable development and infrastructure.
According to the GGGI Vanuatu Country Planning Framework (CPF) 2017-2021, a strategic planning document which commits GGGI and the Government of Vanuatu to common goals for green growth, “rural electrification rates are very low—under 10 percent of households.” The large majority, 76 percent, “are located in rural areas, where only one in 10 homes, under half of the schools (42 percent), and one in four health facilities have some self-generated electricity (mainly petroleum fuel based).” “A challenge is to make energy accessible to all, but by means that are climate safe.
“The goals [of the project] are at first level to provide clean and safe drinking water and, in parallel, to give access to sustainable energy for all at local and regional level.
Weidenhaupt notes that GGGI is an ideal partner as the organisation has a wide range of experience and scope in projects that are at the nexus of climate change, sustainable development water management and other environmental objectives.
Vanuatu’s Challenge in Accessing Climate Resources Vanuatu became a member of GGGI in 2015 and since then GGGI has been working with the government of Vanuatu to promote green growth and assist in meeting Vanuatu’s national development objectives.
These national agencies are consistently involved in GGGI’s in-country activities and programmes,” Kaun says.
Another objective on the NERM is to use renewable energy for green growth, including in the water sector,” says Kaun.

A new joint UN agency study, Drinking Water, Sanitation and Hygiene in Schools: 2018 Global Baseline Report, says that good hygiene facilities in schools provide the basis of a healthy learning environment, and that girls are more likely to attend when they are on their period.
Moreover, children who pick up good hygiene habits at school can reinforce positive life-long behaviours in their homes and communities, says the report.
However, millions of children are going to school without basic hygiene facilities: over 30 per cent of schools worldwide do not provide safe drinking water; a third of schools do not provide the most basic of toilet facilities (such as septic tank, pit latrines or composting toilets); and nearly 900 million children go to schools with no handwashing facilities with soap and water.
The annual report is produced by the World Health Organization/UN Children’s Fund Joint Monitoring Programme, or JMP, which has been monitoring global progress on drinking water, sanitation and hygiene since 1990.
It looks at the progress made towards reaching the targets of two of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Goal 6 (Clean water and sanitation), and Goal 4 (Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all).
Commenting on the report, Kelly Ann Naylor, Global Chief of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene at UNICEF, said that “If education is the key to helping children escape poverty, access to water and sanitation is key to helping children safely maximize their education.
To neglect this is to be careless with the well-being and health of children," Universal access to basic water, sanitation and hygiene in schools is part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, but achieving this ambitious target presents a huge challenge.
The JMP has designed tools to make it easier to track progress across countries, towards a basic level of drinking water, sanitation and hygiene service.

Nearly half the world’s schools lack clean drinking water, toilets and handwashing facilities, putting millions of children at risk of disease, experts warned on Monday.
Almost 900 million children have to contend with a lack of basic hygiene facilities during their education, putting their health at risk and meaning some have to miss school.
"You can’t have a quality learning environment without these basics," said Rick Johnston of the World Health Organisation, a lead researcher on the project.
"Children may not come to school at all if there’s no toilets … Then, when they are at school, they are not going to at their very best if they not able to use a decent toilet or if they are not properly hydrated."
A lack of safe water and sanitation facilities can cause dehydration, illness, and even death.
It found nearly a third of primary and secondary schools lacked a safe and reliable drinking water supply, affecting nearly 570 million children.
Just over a third of schools lacked adequate toilet facilities, affecting more than 620 million children.
Sub-Saharan Africa, East and Southeast Asia had some of the worst facilities.
"It’s deeply shocking," Tim Wainwright, the chief executive of charity WaterAid, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
More than a third of girls in South Asia miss school during their periods, often because they lack access to toilets or pads, according to a WaterAid and UNICEF study earlier this year.

UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) — A UN report published Monday finds that nearly 570 million children around the world do not have access to drinking water at school.
The first-ever global assessment of water and sanitation in schools, which was conducted by the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), shows that 620 million children do not have decent toilets at school and around 900 million cannot wash their hands properly.
The report adds that nearly half, or 47 percent, of the schools, do not provide soap for children.
Researchers also find that children at nursery and primary schools are less likely to have access to clean water and toilets than children at secondary school.
The report warns that this affects young children at an important time for their "cognitive and physical development and growth," adding that diarrhea caused by dirty water and poor toilets kills a child under the age of five every two minutes.
The report underlines the importance of hygiene and sanitation facilities in schools, particularly for girls, who are more likely to attend school and complete their education if these facilities are in place.
One of the sustainable development goals of the United Nations is that all people should have access to decent water and sanitation by 2030.
This means that all households, schools, health care facilities and workplaces should be equipped with decent water and sanitation by then.
Enditem

Moreover, children who pick up good hygiene habits at school can reinforce positive life-long behaviors in their homes and communities, says the report.
Millions of children are going to school without basic hygiene facilities, and the goal of universal access to basic water, sanitation and hygiene remains “a huge challenge,” the United Nations warned on Monday A new joint UN agency study, Drinking Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene in Schools: 2018 Global Baseline Report, says that good hygiene facilities in schools provide the basis of a healthy learning environment and that girls are more likely to attend when they are on their period.
Moreover, children who pick up good hygiene habits at school can reinforce positive life-long behaviors in their homes and communities, says the report.
However, millions of children are going to school without basic hygiene facilities: over 30 per cent of schools worldwide do not provide safe drinking water; a third of schools do not provide the most basic of toilet facilities (such as septic tank, pit latrines or composting toilets); and nearly 900 million children go to schools with no handwashing facilities with soap and water.
The annual report is produced by the World Health Organization/UN Children’s Fund Joint Monitoring Programme, or JMP, which has been monitoring global progress on drinking water, sanitation and hygiene since 1990.
It looks at the progress made towards reaching the targets of two of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Goal 6(Clean water and sanitation), and Goal 4 (Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all).
Commenting on the report, Kelly Ann Naylor, Global Chief of Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene at UNICEF, said that “If education is the key to helping children escape poverty, access to water and sanitation is key to helping children safely maximize their education.
To neglect this is to be careless with the well-being and health of children," Universal access to basic water, sanitation, and hygiene in schools is part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, but achieving this ambitious target presents a huge challenge.
The JMP has designed tools to make it easier to track progress across countries, towards a basic level of drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene service.

UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) — A UN report published Monday finds that nearly 570 million children around the world do not have access to drinking water at school.
The first-ever global assessment of water and sanitation in schools, which was conducted by the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), shows that 620 million children do not have decent toilets at school and around 900 million cannot wash their hands properly.
The report adds that nearly half, or 47 percent, of the schools, do not provide soap for children.
Researchers also find that children at nursery and primary schools are less likely to have access to clean water and toilets than children at secondary school.
The report warns that this affects young children at an important time for their "cognitive and physical development and growth," adding that diarrhea caused by dirty water and poor toilets kills a child under the age of five every two minutes.
The report underlines the importance of hygiene and sanitation facilities in schools, particularly for girls, who are more likely to attend school and complete their education if these facilities are in place.
One of the sustainable development goals of the United Nations is that all people should have access to decent water and sanitation by 2030.
This means that all households, schools, health care facilities and workplaces should be equipped with decent water and sanitation by then.