A third of the world’s children do not have clean water at school, affecting their health and limiting their ability to learn, according to a report published by UNESCO on Wednesday.
“Worldwide, almost one in three schools does not have clean water (…). One in three schools does not have basic sanitary facilities. Nearly half of schools do not have hand washing facilities with soap and water. Progress is too slow “according to the document published by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
“Children in low-income countries are less likely to attend schools that provide these basic services, and coverage is lower in sub-Saharan Africa and the Pacific,” the text reads.
This lack of infrastructure prevents schools from “providing a safe environment that protects children from diseases such as covid-19, parasites, respiratory diseases and diarrhea,” the coordinator of this UNESCO publication, Emilie Sidaner, told AFP news agency.
This situation poses a challenge, especially for girls and sometimes even teachers, who “cannot go to school during their period”, making it difficult to give “equal access to education for girls”, says Sidaner, a health specialist. and school meals.
In Bhutan, a quarter of girls do not go to school at certain times during their menstruation, as is the case for one in five girls in Ivory Coast and one in seven in Burkina Faso, the document’s co-ordinator found.
The impact is also strong on child malnutrition, as schools cannot prepare meals for their students without clean water, Sidaner noted.
According to the official, “we need to invest more in water and sanitation,” emphasizing that hunger takes away students’ concentration and willingness to learn.
“If students are not healthy, well-nourished and protected at school, it will be more difficult for them to acquire the knowledge that the school environment could transfer to them”complained Emilie Sidaner.
Source: DN
