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Bournemouth Water supports World Toilet Day

19th November 2018

620 million children globally do not have access to a decent toilet at school, harming their education, health and life chances, according to a new WaterAid report.

This World Toilet Day (19 November), Bournemouth Water is echoing WaterAid’s call for governments around the world to take urgent action to make decent toilets normal, not just for children, but for everyone everywhere by 2030.

The report, The Crisis in the Classroom: The State of the World’s Toilets 2018, reveals the countries where children are struggling most to access a toilet at school and at home, and highlights those that have made good progress.

It reveals that one in three of the world’s schools don’t have adequate toilets, leaving children with the choice to use dirty, unsafe facilities, go in the open, or stay at home.

And 2.3 billion people globally still don’t have access to a basic household toilet.

Ed Mitchell is the Chair of Bournemouth Water’s WaterAid committee. He said: “We take having a toilet for granted so it’s easy for us to forget that toilets are essential to keep children healthy, safe and in school.  
 
“Making clean water and decent toilets part of normal everyday life for everyone is not just a dream, it's achievable and we're working with WaterAid to make it a reality.
 
“Since 1981, WaterAid has reached 25.8 million people with clean water and 25.1 million people with decent toilets.
 
“The generous support of Bournemouth Water customers and staff has made a significant contribution towards making this possible.”

Read the report and find out more about WaterAid’s work at www.wateraid.org

Notes to editors

• Diarrhoea caused by dirty water and poor toilets kills a child under five every two minutes.
• Dirty water, lack of toilets and poor hygiene contribute to 957 million episodes of diarrhoea in children each year
• Globally, pre-primary and primary schools lack facilities more often than secondary schools – affecting young children at a time that is significant for their cognitive and physical development and growth
• World leaders promised in the 2015 UN Sustainable Development Goals to reach everyone, everywhere with the human right to sanitation by 2030. The world is already woefully behind. Political will and financing are essential from donor and developing nations both if we are to succeed.

For further information please contact:

Bournemouth Water 

www.bournemouthwater.co.uk/contact-us/