Sanitation and Human Development

KOMPAS/BAHANA PATRIA GUPTA

Jamban A unique sign is installed at the edge of Kalimas River, Surabaya, Tuesday (13/03/2018), urging people to not practice open defecation, including in the river. Kompas/Bahana Patria Gupta

Decent sanitation is no longer a problem for some of the public. The availability of sanitation services is a basic right of the people.

Access to sanitation and clean water is inseparable from the human right to a healthy and decent life as guaranteed by the Constitution.

This daily has published since Monday (11/19/2018) coverage on access to sanitation, including data that 76 percent of the national population has access to decent sanitation. The rest still practice open defecation.

In the 2015-2019 Medium-Term National Development Plan (RPJMN), 2019 targets 100 percent access to drinking water, 0 percent slum settlements and 100 percent access to proper sanitation, or the “100-0-100 Movement”. The RPJMN does not exist separately from the government’s continuing commitment to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which ended in 2015, and the 2015-2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The provision of decent sanitation is the sixth point in the SDGs.

The inclusion of sanitation in the SDGs indicates the importance of providing sanitation and liquid waste processing facilities that is accessible to all.

The effects of open defecation are very serious: the contamination of our rivers and groundwater by the Escherichia coli bacteria that live in human feces. Indonesia incurs an average loss of US$6.3 billion each year due to decreased productivity from infectious diseases that are transmitted through water contaminated by human feces. In children under 5, diarrheal diseases can be fatal. Chronic diarrhea and intestinal worms disrupt children’s physical and mental development and lead to stunting.

There are a number of causes as to why people resort to open defecation, including education levels and financial circumstances. Building toilets requires large funds as well as a steady supply of water. Meanwhile, the distribution of clean water is not equitable across the country.

The sanitation program’s approach has become inadequate to deal with the real impacts on public health and in fulfilling the basic rights of each citizen. The large number of people who do not have access to sanitation is an indication of the inequitable distribution of wealth as well as public education on sanitation.

The government has infrastructure development programs. Installing toilets is part of developing the health infrastructure, which has a significant impact on the quality of human resources when combined with improvements in incomes and public education.

Education is no less important than improving wages so that the people can afford decent sanitation in their own homes or communities. Education on the benefits of sanitation and hygiene must be introduced at an early age so they become a habit and in the end, will help establish a culture of healthy and clean lifestyles.