Unsafe drinking water is a source of many diseases, including diarrhoea, typhoid, intestinal worms and hepatitis.
It is estimated that more than 1.6 million DALYs (Disability Adjusted Life Years) are lost annually as a result of death and ailment due to diarrhoea and almost 90,000 as a result of typhoid.
Talking to this news agency, Chairman Pakistan Council for Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) Dr. Aslam Tahir said diarrheal and typhoid mortality in children accounts for the bulk of losses, reflecting the vulnerability of children to these diseases.
He said the total health costs are estimated at Rs114 billion, or approximately 1.81% of GDP.
The high proportions of costs due to premature child deaths, followed by the
mortality impacts of typhoid in the older population are striking.
It has been reported that an estimated 62% of Pakistan urban and 84% of rural population do not treat their water and resultantly 100 million cases of diarrhoeal diseases are registered in hospitals and 40% deaths are caused by polluted water.
A study conducted by Unicef found that 20-40% of the hospital beds in Pakistan are occupied by patients suffering from water-related diseases, such as typhoid, cholera, dysentery and hepatitis, which are responsible for one-third of all deaths.
The PCRWR chairman said fundamental reason behind poor water quality and sanitation are a major public concern, because the resulting water-borne diseases are responsible for substantial human and economic losses. These include loss of million of working hours of productivity annually, and associated costs for healthcare.
Dr. Aslam Tahir said reduction in the occurrence of water-borne diseases will certainly go a long way in the efforts to alleviate poverty.
In rural areas especially, women will be primary beneficiaries of improved water supply and sanitation through health, productivity and safety related impacts.
He said hence sanitation, water quality and quantity and public awareness and education are of prime importance to Pakistan in implementing its poverty reduction strategy and especially for those affected by floods.
