Safe water and good hygiene keep children alive.
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Billions of people around the world still lack access to safe drinking water, basic toilets and good hygiene. For children – more susceptible to infectious disease than adults – the consequences can be fatal.
Hundreds of children under the age of 5 die every day from diarrhoeal diseases that could have been prevented by basic WASH services in their homes, health centres and schools. Millions more find themselves missing out on essential nutrients or education – too often home sick from unsafe drinking water.
Children living in urban settlements and rural areas are more likely than others to be cut off from clean water and sanitation. So too are those growing up in places affected by climate change: From droughts to floods to heat waves, extreme weather events are making water sources less safe as they become more scarce.
During humanitarian emergencies, children already suffering life-threatening experiences are forced, also, to contend with waterborne risks. In fact, children living in conflict zones are almost 20 times more likely to die from diarrhoeal disease than from the violence itself.
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GET WET! 