Fraternity Campaign warns of need for basic sanitation in Brazil

Launched today (Feb. 10) by the National Confederation of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB) and the National Council of Christian Churches (Conic), the 2016 Ecumenical Fraternity Campaign raises the issue of every person's right to basic sanitation as it calls for public policies and measures to ensure the integrity and the future of the environment.

With the theme “Common house, our responsibility” and the motto “I want to see the right spurt forth like a spring and justice run like a stream that never dries up,” the project will also address citizens' development, health, and quality of life.

Conic head Bishop Flávio Irala said that raising the issue is crucial, as it is not always the target of enough public attention while public proposals are devised and social movements created. “We're concerned by the fact that over half of the population is still not served by the sewers, and that a mere 40% of the sewers is treated. No one should lack access to the benefits of basic sanitation as a result of their socioeconomic status,” he argued.

Irala further said that the access to sanitation promotes social inclusion and ensures the main tools for the protection of the quality of water resources and the prevention of diseases like cholera, yellow fever, chikungunya, dengue fever, diarrhea, in addition to keeping the Zika virus from proliferating.

Data released by Conic show that, even though Brazil ranks among the world's top economies, over 100 million Brazilians lack basic sanitation services.

During the campaign's launch ceremony, Cities Minister Gilberto Kassab said that the federal government will do its job in giving full support to the initiative. “Our ongoing and increasing investment is fundamental, so that we may have the conditions to fight epidemics and raise people's quality of life and dignity,” he stated.

Carried out in Brazil since 1963, the ecumenical campaign is also backed by Misereor, a Catholic institution from Germany which aims to contribute to the development of countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira