Community Water Supply
and Sanitation
For water supply and
sanitation programme there are essentially two major activities namely
provision of safe drinking water and provision of adequate sanitary
facilities for systematic human excreta disposal.
The lead agency for
water supply to rural communities is the Water Resources Utilization Department
(WRUD), Ministry of Agriculture and lrrigation. The RWSD projects relate to
almost all technologies.
The Environmental
Sanitation Division (ESD) of the Department of Health (DOH), Ministry of Health
is also responsible for water supply system for health and institutions such as
dispensaries, rural health centre, station hospitals and schools. 
Technologies
include ground water extraction by drilling tube wells and reticulation
systems.
The activities related
to the city and town water supplies are carried out by the Department of
Development Affairs (DDA) of the Ministry for Progress of Border Areas and
National Races & Development Affairs; Yangon and Mandalay City Development
Committees and respective Township Development Committees (TDCs).
Distribution of materials for latrine
construction
Technical assistance in
the study and planning phases are provided by the Urban Water Supply and Sanitation
Planning Division of the Department of Human Settlement and Housing Development
(DHSHD), Ministry of Construction. Construction of some of the major water
supply systems including detailed designs are done by the Public Works,
Ministry of Construction on an agency basis.
Sanitation in rural
areas for communities and health and education institutions is the
responsibility of the ESD and is executed with the assistance of the Township
Medical Officers (TMOs), basic health staff of the rural and urban health
centres and village voluntary workers with the active participation of the
community.
Urban sanitation is the
primary responsibility of the City or Towns Development Committee. Technical
assistance is provided by the urban Water Supply Planning Division of the
Department of Human Settlements and Housing Development, Ministry of
Construction.
Current situation i.e. coverage, of urban and
rural water supply and sanitation are as follow:
|
|
Total |
Rural |
Urban |
|
Water
supply |
66% |
59.9% |
87.9% |
|
Sanitation |
72.64% |
70.48% |
79.14% |
Universal access to safe
water and sanitary excreta disposal by the year 2000 is one of the main
National Health Plan goals of the country.
In order to increase the access
to safe drinking water, sanitary excreta disposal systems and to raise personal
hygiene practices among the population, the process of social mobilization has
been adopted to bring together multisectoral departments and organizations. To
realize the goal of universal access to sanitary excreta disposal by the year
2000. National Sanitation Week was launched in 1998. During this Sanitation
Week the community was mobilized to actively participate in the construction of
sanitary latrines. Following this, 2nd National Sanitation Week was
successfully conducted in the year 1999. A total of 932,415 and 865, 628
sanitary latrines have been constructed in 1999 and 2000 respectively.