Water

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Background
A lack of clean water and poor sanitation are major problems in Cambodia. Less than half of households have access to clean water, and only 34% have toilets (in rural areas, only one fourth do). Diarrhea is a leading cause of infant and child deaths, accounting for 45% of all fatalities among children less than a month old. In addition, chronic diarrhea exacerbates malnutrition and impairs the immune system’s ability to fight off infection and disease. Among adults, diarrhea reduces productivity, with macro-economic consequences. Exposure to diarrhea-causing agents is frequently related to the use of contaminated water and to unhygienic practices in food preparation and disposal of feces.

Objectives
USAID is working with communities, the private sector and the national health system to prevent water-borne diseases and to increase access to safe drinking water. Behavior change communication is helping rural Cambodians to better understand health issues such as diarrhea and see themselves as the most important instrument in the well-being of their families. USAID is also improving water and sanitation at selected public health and education facilities, and USAID is collaborating with 11 provincial health authorities to continue improving water, sanitation and hygiene practices by using community volunteers to convey key messages.

Meanwhile, USAID is working to increase access to safe water through the production of low-cost safe drinking water for vulnerable families. By using smart subsidies and encouraging many actors in the water supply chain to work together, USAID attracted the attention of water supply points through rebates for infrastructure investments, which the water supply points received only after households had running, safe drinking water that met the Ministry of Industry’s standards. As a result, nearly 25,000 mostly poor households now have affordable, clean water piped directly to their homes.