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WHO warns Asian cities face disease crisis
The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that the health of city dwellers in the Western Pacific Region will suffer dramatically unless urgent measures are taken now to alleviate worsening environmental conditions. Highlighting the growing problems, Dr. Shigeru Omi, WHO regional director for the Western Pacific, said the urban poor are more vulnerable to poor health and environmental hazards because they are more likely to lack adequate housing, sanitation and other basic services. Shifting authority from central governments to municipalities can help make policies, plans and actions more responsive, especially to the plight of the urban poor, the WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific on Tuesday quoted Omi as saying in a statement. "Decentralization, accompanied by empowerment of people to take action, can be a potent force for vitalizing communities," he said. "There is no longer a need to wait for the central government to take action. People and their leaders can take on tasks on their own." Many urban areas are growing in population so fast that economies, services and infrastructures cannot cope, said WHO. This will result not only in outbreaks of disease, but also in an upsurge in crime, violence, environmental degradation, pollution, poverty and unhealthy lifestyles. Urban areas worldwide are gaining an estimated 67 million people a year, or about 1.3 million every week. By 2030, about 5 billion people are expected to live in cities + 60 percent of the projected global population of 8.3 billion. About 2.3 billion people worldwide suffer from diseases linked to water problems, such as diarrhea, schistosomiasis, trachoma, ascariasis and hookworm. Water-related diseases kill millions of people each year, preventing millions more from leading healthy lives, and undermining development efforts. WHO estimates that 1.5 billion urban dwellers face levels of outdoor air pollution that are above the maximum recommended limits. In Asia, with half of the world's city dwellers, more than 1.5 million people die every year from diseases related to air pollution. About half a million deaths each year can be attributed to particulate matter and sulphur dioxide in outdoor air. Bringing suspended particulate matter down to safe levels could save between 300,000 and 700,000 lives annually, said WHO. A Consultation on a Regional Network for Healthy Cities will be held at the WHO Regional Office in Manila from Oct. 15 to Oct. 17. Some 80 participants from 15 countries and areas in the region will attend the meeting. The Healthy Cities initiative was created in 1994 by WHO to improve health and the quality of life in urban areas and has since turned into a regional movement with some 100 cities actively involved.
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