New low-cost sustainable sanitation publication

At the Sharing Experiences launch. Left to right: Mark Pascoe, CEO, International WaterCentre; Bob McMullan, Parliamentary Secretary for International Development Assistance; Adam Laidlaw, Chief Executive, WaterAid Australia.

Credit: WaterAid

On World Health Day, 7 April, WaterAid Australia and the International WaterCentre launched their joint publication, Sharing Experiences: Sustainable Sanitation in South East Asia and the Pacific, which promotes the practical application of low-cost sustainable sanitation in our region.

The Parliamentary Secretary for International Development Assistance, Bob McMullan, launched the publication. He highlighted the importance of sanitation, saying, "About 190 million people in our region do not have access to basic sanitation services. In South East Asia and the Pacific alone, approximately 75,000 children will die this year from diarrhoea."

Mr McMullan also reaffirmed the Australian Government's commitment to water and sanitation: "We are committed to helping our neighbours, and in line with other international organisations - including the development banks and UN agencies - we intend to fulfil our election commitment to substantially increase aid for water and sanitation in the next three years."

Sharing Experiences: Sustainable Sanitation in South East Asia and the Pacific captures the experiences and lessons learned in developing sanitation services, and includes case studies of sanitation projects throughout Asia and the Pacific, with examples of what did and did not work.

Australian Ethical Investment Ltd and AusAID supported the publication and printing costs.

Download a copy of Sharing Experiences ( PDF 2Mb)