Andrea Tejokusumo, Jakarta – There is no better moment to address the importance of sanitation than this year's World Water Day, which takes on the issue in conjunction with the UN's 2008 International Year of Sanitation.

Up to this day, poor sanitation standards continue to claim the lives of millions across the globe each year. Recent WHO statistics reported some 1.8 million deaths per year from diarrhea-related diseases, with 90 percent of the victims being children. This means that every 20 seconds, a child in the world dies from poor hygiene – a predicament that puts it in the same lethal category as poverty and hunger.

In Indonesia, the figures don't look too promising either. WHO counted as many as 100 Indonesian child deaths per year as a result of diarrhea, while an estimated 30 percent of Indonesians do not yet have the access to basic sanitary facilities including proper drainage and safe drinking water. This figure sits far behind those of neighboring countries, and contributes greatly to reducing national productivity and the Human Development Index (HDI).

Seeing the direct impact that sanitation brings upon the country and its people, the Indonesian government has been putting a lot of work into improving hygienic conditions across the country. This includes the management of liquid waste, garbage and drainage, on top of ensuring that access to clean water is widely available.

Initiatives like the provincial Proyek Air Bersih (Clean Water Project) have been under way since the 1980s to help reduce water pollution and subsequently help with household water needs. The government has also been teaming up with private companies such as PT Palyja (Pam Lyonnaise Jaya) and TPJ (Thames Pam Jaya) in the effort to increase supply of clean drinking water, although the strategy has been met with varied responses from the general public.

In all, enthusiasm from the government side has proven to be more than commendable. The current Water and Sanitation Working Group (WSWG) has the backing of various government offices from the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas) to the ministries of public works, health, industry, environment and home affairs, and there seems to be cross-sectoral understanding that sanitation is a major issue that affects quality of life on so many different levels.

Despite such a positive stance, however, Indonesia is still facing a number of daunting sanitation problems. Paskah Suzetta, chairman of Bappenas, gave a glimpse into the predicament during the National Sanitation Conference (NSC) in Jakarta last November is very much affected by internal factors such as education, behavior and the economy," Suzetta said in his keynote speech before ministers and representatives from the WSWG.

"On the other hand," he added, "there are also external factors at play, and these include structure, perception and technology."

In terms of structure, Suzetta argued that there has never been a definite law regarding the management of sanitation in Indonesia. Even if an effort is currently being run to review past and current laws and strategies, it would take some time before a new and effective action plan could be formulated that would benefit the masses.

In terms of perception, there needs to be more initiatives to give sanitation a higher profile, so the subject can be more comfortable to broach publicly.

Apart from these instances, participation from local governments is also vital in the widespread distribution of sanitary facilities. To allow for effective implementation, coordination would need to be strengthened between the sectors.

Minister of Public Works Djoko Kirmanto had this to say about the issue, also during the 2007 conference: government institutions often found an overlap of responsibilities between the sectors. This is especially so because it has never been made clear which office should take the core responsibility for sanitation."

The confusion had in turn permeated matters of priority and funding, and many believe not enough budget has been allocated by central or local governments to help deal with the lack of proper sanitation.

The Asian Development Bank estimated that only US$124 million per year, or around 2 percent of the regular national budget, was invested by the central government in water supply and sanitation (average of 2004-2005).

Following decentralization of the economy in 2001, local governments have had to extract infrastructure funds from their own pockets, and most have spent less than 2 percent on sanitation each year.

The fact remains regrettable that on the whole, government allowance for personal hygiene amounts to as little as Rp 200 per person per year, when the number should be around Rp 47,000. This despite studies by WHO that sufficient investment will increase national productivity by 79 percent (2006 report), while for every rupiah spent investing in sanitary facilities, there is bound to be a seven-fold return (2007).

Thus, as Minister Kirmanto said, "Laws will need to be developed to ensure that sanitary facilities are given as much priority as other public facilities." A Declaration of Sanitation was also released during the national conference.

In the meantime, support from NGOs, donors and the private sector has all had a large impact on progress, not only in monetary terms but also in extending public knowledge of health and hygiene in general.

USAID, for example, has been running bilateral sanitary projects with the Indonesian government since 2004 and 2005.are schemes like the Safe Water System and the Environmental Services Program, both of which touch on basic health services including sanitation," said Alfred Nakatsuma, USAID's acting director of the Office of Basic Human Services, to The Jakarta Post.

With a combined fund of nearly $53 million, the two programs will run until 2009 and employ different problem-solving approaches, be it through personal health education, citywide sanitation strategies, or advanced research into water-purifying technologiesthe latter in collaboration with the private sector.

Speaking of Indonesia's agenda to prioritize sanitation, Nakatsuma commented how USAID had been really impressed by the government's picking up its pace with sanitation investments, also by its proactively raising awareness "within its own ministries as well as aid agencies".

He added: "All of us have a long way to go, and it's always a given that government policies and budgets shift slowly. But we are definitely moving in the right direction, especially with the government committing to prioritize sanitation to a much greater degree... more than ever now."