Nepal: 9th National Sanitation Week celebrations

The 9th National Sanitation Week was celebrated in Nepal from 1-7 June 2008 in support of the International Year of Sanitation 2008.

The Department of Water Supply and Sewerage said the objective of the Sanitation Week was to promote the construction of latrines and to declare open defecation free zones. The government plans to provide 60% population with toilets within three years.

During the Sanitation Week open defecation free zones were declared in several villages: Rajyauda and Dola villages in Dadeldhura district; Jhauwabari village in Morang; Dulalthok village in Kavre; and Rajdevi village in Makawanpur.

Other activities held to celebrate the Sanitation Week included:

The Bagmati Peace Festival which promoted the clean-up of Bagmati River and also celebrated the transition of Nepal into a Federal Republic

• A street drama named Paribartan to raise awareness about sanitation was held in Dhulikhel, Kavrepalanchok District
• A musical procession with street drama and a song promoting sanitation and health organised by the Community Drinking Water and Sanitation Office in Rolpa
• A Sanitation Week Rally in Sisakhani, Kavre district organised by the Education Development Primary School Sisakhani and Nagbeli Chhap Drinking Water and Sanitation Users’ Committee