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POOR
sanitation causes the Philippines to incur $1.4 billion
in economic losses annually, according to the latest
study conducted by the World Bank (WB).
This was
among the findings of a four-country study conducted in
Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam under
the Economics of Sanitation Initiative (ESI) titled
“Economic Impacts of Sanitation in Southeast Asia
Summary.”
The
report put the annual per capita losses in the four
countries at $9.30 in Vietnam, $16.80 in the
Philippines, $28.60 in Indonesia to a high of $32.40 in
Cambodia.
“Cambodia, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines lose
an estimated $9 billion a year because of poor
sanitation [based on 2005 prices]. That is approximately
2 percent of their combined gross domestic product
[GDP], varying from 1.3 percent in the
Philippines
and Vietnam to 2.3 percent in Indonesia and 7.2 percent
in Cambodia,” said the report.
It
estimated that the
Philippines’
biggest economic loss is in health, estimated at $1.01
billion a year. This is followed by the economic losses
recorded in water services worth $323 million; tourism,
$40.1 million; and other welfare, $37.6 million.
Health
resources, the report stated, contribute most to the
overall losses of all four countries included in the
study. Poor sanitation, including hygiene, cause at
least 180 million disease episodes and 100,000 premature
deaths annually.
“Poor
sanitation, through its important implications for child
nutritional status, is associated with higher rates of
acute lower respiratory infection [ALRI] and malaria, as
well as increased mortality from a range of childhood
diseases,” said the report. It showed that recent
evidence highlighted the importance of indirect cases of
morbidity and premature mortality. A high proportion of
children under 5 are reported to be malnourished.
Low
weight-for-age is reported in 36 percent of children
under 5 in Cambodia, 28 percent in Indonesia and the
Philippines, and 22 percent in Vietnam.
Episodes
of ALRI attributed to poor sanitation annually exceed 2
million. Indirect deaths attributed to poor sanitation
are in excess of 50,000 per year. The report showed that
in
Cambodia
there are 5,500 ALRI-related deaths;
Indonesia,
26,000; the Philippines, 14,500; and Vietnam, 5,000.
“These
deaths are caused by ALRI [16,000], measles [6,100],
malaria [3,700], and other factors [24,000],” the report
stated.
Poor
sanitation also contributes significantly to water
pollution, which adds to the cost of safe freshwater for
households and reduces the production of fish in rivers
and lakes. |
