- These guidelines summarize evidence on effectiveness of range of sanitation interventions.
- They also articulate role of health sector in maximizing health impact of sanitation interventions.
Salient Features of WHO Guidelines:
- WHO's Sanitation and Health Guidelines are aimed at securing health and wellbeing for everyone, everywhere by considering sanitation as the fundamental foundation of human health and development.
- These guidelines provide a comprehensive framework for health-protecting sanitation, covering policy and governance measures, implementation of sanitation technologies, systems and behavioural interventions, risk-based management, and monitoring approaches.
- They also identify gaps in evidence-base to guide future research efforts to improve the effectiveness of sanitation interventions.
- By adopting these new guidelines, countries can significantly reduce diarrhoeal deaths due to unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene.
- For every US $1 invested in sanitation, it is estimated nearly six-fold return as measured by lower health costs, increased productivity and fewer premature deaths.
Important to know:
- According to WHO, 2.3 billion people worldwide lack basic sanitation and almost half of the world population is forced to defecate in the open.
- They are among 4.5 billion people without access to safely managed sanitation services i.e. do not have toilet connected to sewer or pit or septic tank that treats human waste.
- Without proper access to sanitation, millions of people across the world over are deprived of dignity, safety and convenience of a decent toilet.
- Poor sanitation is also a major factor responsible for transmission of neglected tropical diseases.
About World Health Organization (WHO):
- WHO is a specialized agency of United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health.
- It was established on 7 April 1948, it succeeded the Health Organization, which was an agency of the League of Nations.
- It is a member of UN Development Group (UNDP).
- It is headquartered at Geneva.
- WHO flag features the Rod of Asclepius as a symbol for healing.
Question:
Q. The World Health Organization (WHO) has launched first global guidelines on which aspect?a. Education and Nutrition
b. Sanitation and Health
c. Peace and Harmony
d. None of the above
