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Strong Local Voice, Strong Local ChampionAnnette Brooke, Lib Dem MP for Mid Dorset & North Poole |
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Annette Brooke MP pushes Government on Water and Sanitation Crisis
June 27, 2012 1:35 PM
Annette Brooke, MP for Mid Dorset and North Poole joined a meeting with representatives of the international charities WaterAid and Tearfund and the International Development Secretary of State, Andrew Mitchell MP, to hear about the Government's plans to provide water and sanitation to people in the developing world.
Following the cross party support of MPs, and that of WaterAid and Tearfund supporters, the Government announced in April 2012 that it would double its ambitions and aim to reach at least 60 million people with water, sanitation and hygiene promotion by 2015. Speaking after the All Party Parliamentary Water and Sanitation Group event, Annette Brooke MP stated:
"It is great news that the Government has recognised that it could do much more to tackle the water and sanitation crisis by doubling the number of people it aims to reach with these life saving essential services. What we need now are more details of how this will be achieved and what role organisations like WaterAid and Tearfund can play in making sure that it is the poorest people who benefit from these services."
Alice Anukur, WaterAid's Country Representative in Uganda who also attended the meeting said:
"The Government's announcement to double the number it is aiming to reach underscores the UK's commitment to bring water and sanitation to the worlds poorest and most marginalised. In Uganda alone over 22 million people still do not have adequate sanitation and. 12,395 children needlessly die every year from diarrhoea in my country because of a lack of access to water and sanitation."
Globally, 2.5 billion people lack access to adequate sanitation, while 783 million lack safe drinking water. Every day around 2,000 children under the age of five die because of diarrhoea. The internationally agreed target to halve the number of people lacking access to sanitation by 2015 is one of the most off-track of all the Millennium Development Goals. At the current rate of progress it will be around another 150 years before this target is met in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Paul Cook, Director of Advocacy at Tearfund speaking after the event stated:
"We really appreciate the support that Annette has shown in pushing the Government to try and do more to help solve the water and sanitation crisis. In the work we do with local communities in Africa and Asia, time and time again, we keep hearing from them that safe water and adequate sanitation is a real priority for them. It's critical that MPs and local supporters continue to help us maintain the political priority around this issue both in the UK and internationally."