JAKARTA - The Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Program (WASH) by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in West Nusa Tenggara supports the total community-based sanitation (STBM) in NTB Province has started in 2017. WASH supports the acceleration of open defecation free, or known as a free-to-pose program (BABS).
In accordance with its objectives, WASH will contribute to the World Water Forum agenda which will be held in Bali, May 18-25, 2024.
"The WASH program is one of the agendas that will be discussed, for example how the commitment of state governments to encourage cooperation in overcoming water and sanitation problems," said Indonesian WASH UNICEF Specialist Muhammad Zainal, Friday.
Zainal said WASH services at health and sanitation facilities in education units, which have been taking place in NTB, are in line with topics to be discussed in the forum.
Zainal assessed that the development of achievements in NTB was quite good, especially with the strong commitment of local governments to achieve the target of sustainable development goals.
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Regarding the sanitation target, according to him, NTB wants to ensure everyone has access to proper sanitation.
"NTB is the second province in Indonesia that has succeeded in achieving ODF, open defecation free, or BABS, Stop Exhausting Carelessly," he said.
Zainal said the WASH service target is not only a decent sanitation, but also a safe sanitation achievement.
Therefore, the efforts carried out by the program - apart from the use of latrines - also includes efforts to manage it safely and not pollute the environment before being dumped into the environment.
UNICEF sees the impact on children, namely a significant decrease in the stunting rate (tengkes) in West Sumbawa.
West Sumbawa, he said, became the district with the lowest tengkes in NTB.
Based on the results of the survey on Indonesian nutritional status (SSGI), the number of tengkes of West Sumbawa decreased from 2019 by 33.40 percent to 10.5 percent in 2023.
"We hope that this sanitation program will contribute directly to reducing the number of environmentally-based diseases for children," he said.
In addition, UNICEF together with Baznas and the NTB regional government reviewed the development of advocacy for latrine construction and septic tanks for mustahik in Kotaraja Village, East Lombok Regency.
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