AFRICA - Polluted water: silent killer that claims the lives of 1.8 children under 5 every year

Johannesburg (Agenzia Fides) – Every 20 seconds a child dies of an illness related to water pollution, every year about 1.8 million of them under age five. These alarming figures emerge from the last report of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), where we read that every day millions of tons of solid waste are dumped into bodies of water, polluting them and facilitating the spread of disease. About 90% of cases of diarrhea, which kill 2.2 million people each year, are caused by water not potable water and poor hygiene. Over 50% of cases of malnutrition are usually associated with diarrhea or intestinal infections. Over half of hospitals around the world are occupied by people infected with diseases linked to water pollution. Approximately 900 million people lack access to safe water and about 2.6 billion lack access to basic health. Southeast Asia (about 221 million) and Sub-Saharan Africa (330 million) have the highest rate of population deprived of basic health. (AP) (Agenzia Fides 26/3/2010)