AMERICA/UNITED STATES -
New York City (Agenzia Fides) - Because of diarrheal diseases, caused by the lack of drinking water and health services, 1,400 children under 5 years of age die every day. They are every year more than 600,000 out of a total of more than 1 million and 700 thousand cases. Diarrhea continues to be the second leading cause of death for children under 5 all over the world. These diseases also lead to the possibility of chronic malnutrition, with growth retardation, as well as leading to an enormous expenditure for society.
Simple precautions would be enough to avoid infection: to wash your hands with soap before eating and after going to the bathroom. This is what the UNICEF WASH program highlights on the occasion of the celebration of the 6th Global Hand Washing Day. The planned activities for the Day are all aimed at the promotion of this habit and to make people aware of its importance for the survival of children and for the health of the community in general. Among the various Countries in the world, approximately 5 million children in Ethiopia will take part, 3,300 schools will join, with nearly a million and a half children in Yemen, a thousand schoolchildren in Vietnam, 450 elementary schools in Sierra Leone and 424 in Mali, 200 schools in 50 communities in Gambia, 12 cities in Indonesia and 22 educational centers in various municipalities of Bolivia. (AP) (Agenzia Fides 16/10/2013)
