Jigmi Wangdi

Nearly all households, a staggering 99.8 percent in Bhutan, now have access to basic drinking water, according to the National Health Survey report 2023.

Basic drinking water is defined as drinking water from an improved source, available on-premises, or with a collection time of fewer than 30 minutes.

The report provides a comprehensive overview of Bhutan’s progress in water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), and highlights the significant achievements in providing safe water and improved sanitation facilities.

One of the key findings is that 99.7 percent of households and the population have access to improved sources of drinking water.

The major sources of improved drinking water include piped water into dwellings, yards, or plots, which serve 94.2 percent of the households. Public taps or standpipes account for another 3.4 percent.

This high level of access extends across all dzongkhags, with 98 percent of the population benefiting from improved drinking water sources. Urban areas have complete coverage while rural areas have 99.5 percent coverage.

The report also revealed that 87.8 percent of households had 24-hour water supply in the past seven days. However, disparities exist between regions. For instance, only 78.7 percent of households in Tsirang had 24-hour water supply compared to 99.6 percent in Gasa and 97 percent in Lhuentse.

Sanitation has also seen significant improvement, with 99.1 percent of the Bhutanese population using improved sanitation facilities, with 74.9 percent of the households using flush-to-septic tanks facilities and 20.4 percent using the sewer systems. A small percentage of households still relied on unimproved facilities, such as pit latrines without slabs.

Urban areas (99.6 percent) reported slightly better access to sanitation facilities (compared to rural areas (99.1 percent).

More than half of the households (55.3 percent) have sanitation facilities within their dwelling and 44.1 percent in their yard or plot.

The report states that 83.8 percent of households have access to basic sanitation services, which is defined as improved facilities not shared with other households. Around 15.3 percent of households still rely on limited sanitation services, which are shared with other households.

Hand washing facilities are almost commonly available, with 99.5 percent of the population having designated places for hand washing.  Overall, 92.6 percent of the population has access to basic hand washing facilities, which include soap and water, while 6.9 percent have limited access, lacking either soap or water.

The National Health Survey report 2023 attributes these achievements to Bhutan prioritising access to safe drinking water and sanitation as early as the 1960s followed by the launch of the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation programme in 1974.  The government’s Water Flagship Programme, focusing on 24/7 access to safe drinking water in the 12th Five Year Plan, further bolstered these efforts.

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