Indonesia Invites 80 World Ministers to Discuss Water and Sanitation

"This meeting has been held by Sanitation and Water for All, as a partnership under the United Nations every two years, since 2010," said Deputy for Facilities and Infrastructure of the Ministry of National Development Planning/Bappenas Josaphat Rizal Primana in a written statement, Thursday (12/5). 2022). 

"This year is the first time that SMM has discussed the relationship between drinking water and sanitation with three crises, namely the Covid-19 pandemic, the increasing emergency situation, and the global economy which is struggling in the face of commitments to sustainable development," he continued.

Josaphat said the three crises were closely related to people's access to air and sanitation and the need for investment to ensure that access could be achieved. This is because nearly 90 percent of climate disasters are water-related, including floods, droughts and deteriorating water quality. In Indonesia alone, he continued, during 2007-2019, air-related disasters caused many fatalities, as well as causing economic losses of an average of US$2–3 billion annually. 

In fact, based on a study by the World Bank, resources and services are the key to maintaining the growth of gross domestic product (GDP) and per capita income in Indonesia. Meanwhile, investment in the water and sanitation sector is important if Indonesia wants to be in the top five of the world economy, according to Indonesia's Vision 2045.

This was stated by the Director of Housing and Settlements of the Ministry of National Development Planning/Bappenas Tri Dewi Virgiyanti.

Tri Dewi explained, in recent years, Indonesia has made great progress in increasing access to drinking water and sanitation with 80.29 percent of the community being served proper sanitation and 7.25 percent of safely managed sanitation until the end of 2021. Meanwhile, water has reached 90 percent.

21 percent access is feasible with 11.9 percent of which is safe. "SMM 2022 is a momentum to push commitments to fulfill access to safe drinking water and sanitation, sometimes sharing opportunities for Indonesia's success and sustainable efforts with other countries,".

QMS 2022 will be a platform for political leaders around the world to strategize, commit, collaborate, and prioritize water and sanitation investments. It is hoped that this will support the implementation of the sustainable goal of providing access to safe and sustainable drinking water and sanitation for all.