- 2,500,000,000 people (close to 40% of the world's population) live without access to sanitation
- 1,800,000 children die each year, as a result of polluted drinking water and insufficient sanitation
- 433,000,000 school days missed per year because of waterborne diseases
Progress towards the UN Millennium Development Goal to halve by 2015 the proporÂtion of people without access to basic sanitation is "off track".
- 95,000 families need to be provided with with sanitation each day to reach this goal
- sanitation is not "sexy" - politicians and donors prefer water projects over those for sanitation
A "1st Preparatory Meeting for IYS 2008”" was held on the 7th of May, 2007 in UNICEF House in New York. Composing of over 100 representatives from 29 countries and including representatives from governments, UN agencies, NGOs, academia and other stakeholders, the meeting brought together a wealth of experience in drafting the objectives for IYS 2008. The meeting, co-hosted by UNSGAB, UN-DESA and UNICEF was chaired by HRH Prince of Orange, Chair of UNSGAB, and UN Secretary-General Mr. Ban Ki-Moon was also in attendance
The GTO was honoured to be a part of this process.
Click here to read the Draft Objectives of IYS 2008