87 per cent of Cambodia’s population have access to basic drinking water: official

Phnom Penh, Jan 2 (IANS) Eighty-seven per cent of a 17-million population in Cambodia now have access to basic drinking water, while 21 per cent have access to safely managed drinking water, an official said on Thursday.

Chreay Pom, Director General of technical affairs at the Ministry of Rural Development, disclosed the figures during a meeting on clean water and sanitation in rural areas.

“For sanitation, by 2024, approximately 92 percent of the population have access to basic sanitation, while 51 percent have access to safely managed sanitation,” he said.

According to the ministry, 14 provinces out of the kingdom’s 25 provinces have achieved Open Defecation-Free status, Xinhua news agency reported.

Speaking at the meeting, Chhay Rithisen, minister of rural development, said the ministry has planned to declare seven more provinces free of open defecation by the end of 2025.

The government has set a goal to ensure that by 2030, all people across the Southeast Asian country will have access to sufficient clean water and 100 per cent sanitation, living in a sustainable environment.

–IANS

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