Sweden donates $4m to improve water safety in Bangladesh

Sweden has contributed $4 million to Unicef for improving the condition of children and adolescents in Bangladesh.

The contribution consists of two grants- one aims to improve water safety, sanitation and hygiene for children, women and communities, while the second focuses on empowering adolescents, particularly from marginalised communities, said a press statement on Tuesday.

"Our goal is a Bangladesh where every child has access to safe and clean water, basic toilets, and good hygiene practices so that all children can thrive and have a healthier start in life," Unicef Representative to Bangladesh Sheldon Yett said.

Bangladesh is set to scale up practical and innovative models, previously developed by Unicef with the support of Sweden, for arsenic-free water systems by investing 24 crores of its budget into arsenic-safe water hardware.

The initiative will improve water safety for 20 million people, including 5.4 million children, living in highly arsenic-affected rural areas.

The new $2 million contributions from Sweden represents the bridging phase of a larger contribution and will enable Unicef to provide the technical assistance which will ensure that the new systems meet national safety standards.

With the collaboration of Unicef and Sweden, 2,500 new safe water points have been serving over 300,000 people, and nearly half a million people have benefited from hygiene education and improved latrines over the last four years. Since then, 261 villages have been declared arsenic safe in Bangladesh.

A second additional $2 million grant from Sweden aims to support a broad programme of interventions to improve the health, nutrition, protection and life skills of adolescents, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds in Dhaka, Gazipur, Barishal and Patuakhali.

The programme includes comprehensive sexuality education and mental health services. It will also support adolescents to participate in programmes to address the impact of climate change in their communities.

"By investing in adolescents, we strengthen their ability to build a brighter future for themselves, their families and communities," Sheldon Yett added.

Ambassador of Sweden to Bangladesh HE Alexandra Berg von Linde said, "Sweden has been supporting Bangladesh since its independence in improving the sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) of adolescents. Increasing access to SRHR will help to create an enabling environment for adolescents for unleashing their full potential.",

"Sweden is also happy to contribute to expanding the water, sanitation, and hygiene facilities for the poor and vulnerable population. Women, children and adolescents are at the centre of the Swedish development cooperation."

Collaborating with Unicef, Sweden has supported Bangladesh in the areas of urban health for slum dwellers, climate change, adolescent SRHR, the multisectoral response to Covid-19, sanitation, hygiene, and arsenic mitigation to improve the living conditions of the poor and the distressed.