The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) has granted 3.9 million Swedish crowns (US$ 587,000) for a three-year project on sustainable sanitation in flooded areas in India. The research project is lead by Stockholm Environment Institute in collaboration with the WASH Institute, India, and focuses on sustainable sanitation solutions in areas experiencing recurrent flooding. The state of Bihar is the most flood-prone state in India with more than 16 percent of the total flood-affected area and with more than 22 percent of India’s flood-affected population.
The current sanitation coverage in Bihar is less than 25 % but actual use is much lower.
Flooding and the sanitation-related issues that come with it strongly affect the most vulnerable individuals, children under five, the disabled, elderly and child-bearing women, through diarrheal diseases.
SEI announced the project at the Global Forum on Sanitation and Hygiene which took place from 9-14 October 2011 in Mumbai, India.
For more on the project go to the SEI web site.
Source: WSSCC Global Forum on Sanitation and Hygiene
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