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COVID-19 Reminds Us That Why Access to Water and Sanitation for All is Vital

• 02.04.2020
• Author:Dursun Yıldız
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COVID-19 Reminds Us That Why Access to Water and Sanitation for All is Vital ^[1]

                                                                Dursun Yıldız

Civil Engineer

                                               Hydropolitics Association of Turkey                                  

Kavaklıdere Mah.Güfte Cad. No: 8/9 TR 06680  Çankaya, Ankara, Turkey

E mail: dyildiz@hidropolitikakademi.org

                                                          SUMMARY

Billions of people around the world are continuing to suffer from poor access to water, sanitation, and hygiene, according to a new report by UNICEF and the World Health Organization. Some 2.2 billion people around the world do not have safely managed drinking water services, 4.2 billion people do not have safely managed sanitation services, and 3 billion lack basic handwashing facilities.

There is a proverb in Turkish. A calamity is better than a thousand pieces of advice. Nowadays we will have a lot of time to think about the many issues that this calamity reminds us.  Many intellectuals and scientists have already begun to state that the world will be reshaped after COVID-19 in many respect.

As the world confronts the coronavirus pandemic, experts say that a key way to minimize the odds of getting sick is by washing your hands thoroughly and frequently. It's harder to practice hygiene when you have less access to water, and hygiene is critical for health. The absence of handwashing worsens the unhealthy consequences of the lack of sanitation, which along with the consumption of unsafe water cause the death of more than 800 children every day.

The aim of this article is highlighting again why access to water for all is vital and why do we need a paradigm shift for our healthy future.

Keywords: COVID 19, Water and Hygiene, Water Right, Access to Water,