By PHELILE MWANDILA? –

WATER AID Zambia country representative Fatoumata Haidara has called for more investment in safe water supply and adequate sanitation facilities to boost maternal and child health.
Ms Haidara said investing in safe water supply and adequate sanitation facilities were crucial for maternal and child health.?Ms Haidara also said installing low cost water supply facilities in local communities freed children and women from the burden of walking long distances in search of safe drinking water.
She said this then allowed children enough time to go to school while the women engage in productive activities.?She was speaking at the Civil Society Organisation (CSO) Water, Sanitation and Hygiene meeting.
Ms Haidara said Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) sector were closely related to issues of poverty, health, education and gender, and progress was needed to attain sustainable development.
“For our country Zambia, the vision of the water and sanitation sector is a Zambia where all users have access to water and sanitation as well as utilise them in an efficient and sustainable manner for wealth creation and improved livelihood by 2030,” she said.
Ms Haidara said it is also the sector’s goal to achieve 75 per cent accessibility to reliable safe water and 60 per cent adequate sanitation by 2015 in rural areas while 100 per cent water coverage and 80 percent in urban areas.?She urged CSOs in WASH to continue being proactive and further strengthen communities’ demand for sufficient sanitation.
She also appealed to CSOs to improve communities’ rights to better WASH services, while ensuring that communities take responsibility to sustain WASH services.
“I further urge the CSOs in WASH to promote responsive service delivery among service providers including local authorities and the private sector,” she said.