International definitions of access to drinking water and sanitation
MDG Target 7c calls on countries to "Halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking-water and basic sanitation." The official MDG indicators to measure and report on progress towards this target are the following:
- The proportion of population using an improved drinking water source, urban and rural
- The proportion of population using an improved sanitation facility, urban and rural.
An improved drinking-water source is defined as one that, by nature of its construction or through active intervention, is protected from outside contamination, in particular from contamination with faecal matter. To allow for international comparability of estimates, the JMP uses the following classification to differentiate between "improved" and "unimproved" drinking-water sources.
Improved drinking water sources / Unimproved drinking water sourcesPiped water into dwelling, plot or yard
Piped water into neighbor’s plot
Public tap/standpipe
Tubewell/borehole
Protected dug well
Protected spring
Rainwater / Unprotected dug well
Unprotected spring
Small cart with tank/drum
Tanker truck
Surface water (river, dam, lake, pond, stream, channel, irrigation channel)
Bottled water[1]
An improved sanitation facility is defined as one that hygienically separates human excreta from human contact. To allow for international comparability of estimates, JMP uses the following classification to differentiate between "improved" and "unimproved" types of sanitation facilities.
Improved sanitation facilities / Unimproved sanitation facilitiesFlush or pour-flush to:
- piped sewer system
- septic tank
- pit latrine
Ventilated improved pit latrine (VIP)
Pit latrine with slab
Composting toilet / Flush or pour-flush to elsewhere [2]
Pit latrine without slab or open pit
Bucket
Hanging toilet or hanging latrine
No facilities or bush or field (open defecation)
Public or shared sanitation facilities
National definitions and indicators of access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation
(please complete or attach)
Access to drinking water / Access to sanitationGeneral description: / General description:
Calculation of coverage estimates for MDG monitoring by the WHO/UNICEF JMP
1990, 1995, 2000 and 2006 coverage estimates are based on nationally representative survey and census data. These data are plotted on a time scale and a linear regression line, based on the least squares method is drawn through the data points. The coverage estimates are derived from the linear regression line as shown below:
Explanation of most common discrepancies between national and international coverage estimates
1) Use of different definitions of access including poorly defined access categories
2) Use of latest survey or census findings vs. use of an interpolated estimates based on linear regression
3) Use of different population estimates, including a different distribution of urban and rural populations
4) Use of “old” estimates which do not reflect all, or the latest findings of new sample surveys or a new census
5) Use of “reported” line ministry data vs. use of independently verifiable data from sample surveys or censuses
Adjustments made by JMP to census and sample survey findings to ensure comparability
Censuses and sample surveys often do not provide a sufficient level of disaggregation by type of drinking water source or sanitation facility used. Sometimes a facility type is not well defined and interpretation of whether or not such facility is improved is difficult. Based on other surveys on file the JMP estimates what proportion of such poorly defined categories should be considered improved. For China this has been done in the following instance(s):
Survey / Facility type / Adjustments made by JMPNMICS 1992 / Dry latrine / After consultation with the China Sanitation Authority of the Ministry of Health it was decided that the JMP could consider 50% of the users of a ‘Dry latrine’, Dry toilet’ or ‘Shallow pit’ as having access to a sanitary latrine – which corresponds to the MDG definition of an improved sanitation facility.
Census 1992 / Dry toilet
PSS 1999 / Shallow pit
NHSS 1993, 1998, 2003 / Sanitary latrines / The NHSS only reported on the use of harmless sanitary latrines and reportedly did not collect information on the use of other latrine types or the practice of open defecation. A proportion of other latrine types however meet the Ministry of Health’s definition of a sanitary latrine which corresponds to that of an improved sanitation facility. The proportion “other sanitary latrines” on which the NHSS did not report is estimated using the relative proportions of sanitary latrines of the Census 1992 (for NHSS 1993) and PSS 1999 (for NHSS 1999 and 2003).
Two interpretation of sanitation categories: Harmless sanitary latrines and Sanitary latrines
According to the Hygienic Standard for Rural Household Latrines (GB19379-2003) of the People’s Republic of China, sanitary latrines are defined as those structures which have walls, roofs, seepage-free and leakage free storage tanks, furnished with airtight covers, clean in the latrine room, free from flies and maggots, odorless and in which the feces are collected timely and are put into harmless treatment. The sanitary latrines with the process of putting feces through harmless treatment are called harmless sanitary latrines. The National Health Services Surveys of 1993, 1998 and 2003 collected information applying this definition of coverage which includes the following sanitation categories: - 3-compartment septic tanks, Double urn latrines, 3-in-1 biogas latrines, Urine diverting latrines and Double-pit alternating latrines.
The China Sanitation Authority within the Chinese Ministry of Health uses a broader definition called sanitary latrines. In addition to the six harmless sanitary latrine types sanitary latrines include: Anti-freezing deep pits, Attic latrines, Ventilation improved pits (VIP). The definition of sanitary latrines corresponds to the MDG definition of improved sanitation facilities.
Other household surveys and census data on file but not taken into account for MDG monitoring
Survey/Census / Reason for exclusion for MDG monitoring / Water / SanitationChina Economic, Population, Nutrition and Health Surveys
1989, 1991, 1993, 1997, 2000, 2004 / These surveys are not nationally representative / ü / ü
World Health Survey 03
Other nationally representative household surveys and census data not listed previously
Please list nationally representative surveys or censuses that contain information about drinking water and sanitation coverage which are not listed on any of the previous pages
Other survey or census data not yet included for MDG monitoring by the WHO/UNICEF JMP / YearHow to submit survey or census data for international monitoring?
Data from new nationally representative household surveys and censuses, as well as from nationally representative surveys not listed in this document can be send to UNICEF’s data inbox: and copied to: Rolf Luyendijk, Sr. Statistics and Monitoring Specialist Water and Sanitation/JMP at . Data should be sent disaggregated by urban and rural areas and by drinking water and sanitation service category. In line with the formulation of the MDG indicators for water and sanitation, the denominator of choice is population rather than households.
National drinking water and sanitation coverage estimates and targets
(Please provide your national coverage data – when available)
Drinking water coverage / Sanitation coverage / Data sourceYear / Urban / Rural / Total / Urban / Rural / Total
1990 / % / % / % / % / % / %
1995 / % / % / % / % / % / %
2000 / % / % / % / % / % / %
2006 / % / % / % / % / % / %
…… / % / % / % / % / % / %
…… / % / % / % / % / % / %
MDG target (2015) / - / - / % / - / - / %
National target Year: / - / - / % / - / - / %
Remarks
Thank you for returning a filled out copy of this file by email to:
UNICEF – Mr. Rolf Luyendijk:
Data summary sheet of drinking water and sanitation coverage in China – UNSD and ESCAP meeting, Bangkok, January 2009
[1] Bottled water is considered to be improved only when the household uses water from another improved source for cooking and personal hygiene; where this information is not available, bottled water is classified on a case-by- case basis.
[2] Excreta are flushed to the street, yard or plot, open sewer, a ditch, a drainage way or other location.