Prey Veng second ODF province
MINISTER of Rural Development Ouk Rabun will preside over the declaration of Prey Veng as the second province to become open defecation free (ODF) this August, after Svay Rieng became the first to announce its ODF status in April.
As of July, the ministry had conferred ODF status on 5,341 villages, 94 per cent of the 415 target communes and more than 150 per cent of the targeted districts in Prey Veng.
Ministry secretary of state Chrun Theravat revealed the figures at a press conference on its achievements in the past five years, held at the Council of Ministers on August 1.
“Svay Rieng was the first province in Cambodia to be named ODF free, and in August Prey Veng has achieved the same feat,” he said.
Theravat said Cambodia was the second ranked country for ODF reductions rates, reducing its open defecation rate from 82.7 per cent in 2000 to just 40.6 per cent in 2015.
He said the positive results were due to the government’s efforts in close cooperation with development partners and
local and international NGOs, as well as the private sector.
“Overall, the living conditions of rural communities have improved significantly through access to rural water supply and sanitation services. Nowadays, rural people generally have access to basic services, good hygiene and a clean environment,” he said.
He said this access to important services meant there had been a dramatic uptick in health and nutrition throughout the country.
The ministry gave the first award to Svay Rieng once it was determined that 100 per
cent of people had access to latrines. The declaration, presided over by minister Rabun, was made on April 27.
Citing a report based on the Cambodia Socio-Economic Survey 2019-2020, Rabun said that by the end of this year, 80 per cent of the country’s population are set to have access to clean water, 80 per cent to improved toilets, and 89 per cent to reliable hand washing facilities.
Hang Hybunna – a specialist in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) at Plan International Cambodia – said his organisation had worked on improving clean water and sanitation access since 2006, with the specific goal of helping villages, communes, districts and provinces to become ODF.
He said Plan had worked on WASH in Svay Rieng province since 2011 until 2018 and in Prey Veng since 2015, noting that the latter had internally announced its ODF.
Hybunna added that Plan would work with the ministry to evaluate whether the ODF status was accurate, and a national working group would check their findings, just as they had for Svay Rieng.
Theravat said the ministry would continue to implement its development plans, in line with the government’s goal of the Kingdom becoming a high middle income country by 2030 and high income by 2050.
He added that the ministry is focused on important work to improve and enhance the socio-economic and cultural status of rural people by reducing poverty. Closing the gap between rural and urban areas would lead to sustainable and civilised development by improving the quality of life of all members of Cambodian society, he said.