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17 Brown J. World Aff. 167 (2010-2011)
Neither Friend nor Foe: Why the Commercialization of Water and Sanitation Services Is Not the Main Issue in Realization of Human Rights

handle is hein.journals/brownjwa17 and id is 173 raw text is: Neither Friend nor Foe: Why the Commercialization of Water and Sanitation Services is not the Main Issue in the Realization of Human Rights CATARINA DE ALBUQUERQUE AND INGA T. WINKLER THE MULTI-FACETED GLOBAL WATER AND sanitation crisis has enormous human and developmental impacts. Close to I billion people do not have access to an improved water source, 2.6 billion people do not have access to improved sanitation, and over a billion people practice open defecation.' However, these figures only reflect whether people have access to a certain type of technology that is categorized as improved: They do not take into account whether services are affordable or if water quality meets safety standards, among other shortcomings. Pilot studies indicate that far from all water sources that are categorized as improved meet water quality standards. In the pilot countries surveyed, 10 percent of piped water sources and 30 to 60 percent of other improved sources fail to meet microbiological standards stipulated by WHO guidelines.' This indicates that the extent of the global water and sanitation crisis is actually even larger than the official data would suggest. Many diseases are associated with the lack of access to water and sanitation. Diar- rheal disease alone has a greater impact on children than HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria combined. It is estimated that each year, 443 million school days are lost worldwide due to water-related illnesses.' Girls are particularly affected since they tend to drop out of school upon reaching the age of puberty due to a lack of sex-segregated sanitation facilities at school.6 Similarly, girls are often prevented from attending school by their responsibility to collect water for the family, a chore that Catarina de Albuquerque is the UN Independent Expert on the issue of human rights obligations related to access to safe drinking water and sanitation appointed by the UN Human Rights Council. Inga T. Winkler is a researcher based at the German Institute for Human Rights providing support and advice to the mandate of the Independent Expert. Brown Journal of World Affairs, Copyright © 2010 FALL / WINTER 2010 - VOLUME XVII, ISSUE I 167

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