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- That the Senate notes:
- Thursday 19th November 2009 is World Toilet Day - a day to celebrate the importance of sanitation and raise awareness for the world's population who don't have access to toilets and proper sanitation;
- 2.5 billion people worldwide are without access to proper sanitation, which risks their health, strips their dignity, and kills 1.8 million people (mostly children) a year;
- lack of proper sanitation is the world's biggest cause of malnutrition and infection, causing diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera, typhoid and worm infections that kill 5,000 children each day;
- clean toilets contribute to poverty eradication by protection one's health and ability to work;
- safe collection and treatment of human waste and other various wastewaters protects drinking water sources and eco-systems, creating clean and healthy living environments, particularly in urban areas;
- the Millennium Development Goals (supported by all parties in the Australian Parliament) cannot be reached unless sanitation conditions are rapidly improved;
- the upcoming Global Framework for Action on Water and Sanitation meeting in Washington April 2010 is the opportunity for global support of the sanitation policy leadership of the UK, Dutch and Australian Governments;
- And calls upon the Government to;
- invest via its aid program in programs and projects aimed at improving sanitation levels, increasing the number of public toilets, and improving their cleanliness and accessibility;
- ensure that the Australian Government plays a constructive, proactive role at the Global Framework for Action on Water and Sanitation meeting in Washington April 2010, and;
- report the proportion of development aid spent on sanitation.
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