Aiming to promote hygienic practices and enhance the quality of life in South Asian countries, a regional conference on sanitation has been inaugurated here by Nepalese President Ram Baran Yadav.
Around 300 delegates, including former external affairs minister Madhav Singh Solanki, are among the dignitaries attending the 5th South Asian Conference on Sanitation.
"Constitution of Nepal has guaranteed for right to live in safer environment to its citizens and sanitation journey in Nepal is one of the step ensuring rights given by constitution," said President Yadav, who inaugurated the three-day regional conference yesterday.
Addressing the first plenary session as the chief guest, Vice President Permananda Jha today underlined the need to forge unity and collaboration among South Asian nations for achieving better sanitation and hygiene in the region.
"In South Asia, two-third people are still lacking sanitation facility, which puts the entire population of the region at risk," he said.
In South Asia, between 2 to 5 per cent of the GDP is being lost due to poor sanitation, he said.
"Nepal has already surpassed its Millennium Development Goal (MDG) in sanitation with 62 per cent sanitation coverage. We are on our way to attain the universal sanitation standard by 2017," he said.
Nepalese Minister for Urban Development Chhabiraj Pant, who was also present at the conference, said the government had introduced a sanitation Master Plan in 2011, which has helped in attaining the MDG in time, with local bodies playing a key role in improving the state of sanitation.
Besides eight South-Asian countries, representatives from the World Health Organization, World Bank and UNICEF are also among the particpants. Around 50 sanitation experts will also present papers followed by group discussions.
The conference will conclude with the announcement of the Kathmandu Declaration as a way forward to better sanitation in the region.
