September 22, 2010
Heads of State and UN Secretary General urge action on water and sanitation
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, together with the President of Liberia Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, today called for immediate action on sanitation - the most off-track Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target in sub-Saharan Africa.
The call came on the final day of the MDG Summit, where world leaders will determine how to meet the 2015 deadline to halve world poverty.
Also pledging their support at the event were many high-level figures including former UN General Assembly President and current WaterAid in Sweden Chair, Jan Eliasson, and UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake.
If development is to become truly sustainable, we must move forward on
all MDGs. The strength of a chain is decided by the strength of its
weakest link – that means action on sanitation now 
Ambassador Eliasson, UN General Assembly President
Ambassador Eliasson, who is a member of the Secretary General's MDG Advocacy Group said: "I can think of nothing that is more important to the health and well-being of the world’s poorest people and yet is so off-track. This event isn't about lamenting another crisis but rather harnessing the potential of sanitation and water to drive efforts to alleviate world poverty."
The sanitation crisis extends beyond Africa; today, the UN estimates 2.6 billion people do not have access to even a basic toilet.
The consequences of not meeting the sanitation target are shocking. Diarrhoea, caused by a lack of sanitation and clean water, is the biggest killer of children in sub-Saharan Africa, responsible for the deaths of more 4,000 children a day, more than AIDS, malaria and TB combined. And it doesn't stop there: education, nutrition and economic prosperity are all linked to sanitation.
In a recent article, The orphan development goal, President Johnson-Sirleaf wrote: "We cannot wait another ten years. Let us act now to ensure that citizens everywhere can live healthy and dignified lives, full of the promise and potential that is their right."
Ambassador Eliasson concluded: "If development is to become truly sustainable, we must move forward on all MDGs. The strength of a chain is decided by the strength of its weakest link – that means action on sanitation now."
ENDS