A total of 60 million people in the world are exposed to high levels of arsenic in water (arsénholdigt vand) while more than 80 percent of them – or fifty million – live in Asia, said the UN Childrens Fund (UNICEF) on Sunday.
According to UNICEF Bangladesh and India are the most affected with over 30 million people exposed to high levels of arsenic in the water.
UNICEF estimates that at least 25 million people in Bangladesh are exposed to arsenic contamination in their drinking water, UNICEF water and sanitation specialist Rick Johnston said in Dhaka.
He could not estimate how many people died every year because of exposure to the chemical. – This is a very serious issue. It needs more efforts, Johnston said.
– Bangladesh has accomplished a lot in terms of arsenic mitigation during the last decade, UNICEF Representative Carel de Rooy.
He added that because of the mitigation efforts by the government with the support of several development partners 14 percent of the people living in arsenic-affected area of the country have already switched to safe drinking water.
Kilde: www.worldbank.org
