A massive sanitation drive is afoot in Bangladesh, says a Panos report. Inspired by the success of joint government and NGO initiatives in Barisal, the target for 1995 is to extend sanitary coverage to half of Bangladesh's population.

People's participation has spurred success in Barisal, Bangladesh's southernmost administrative division. In Banaripara, a sub-district in Barisal, sanitation coverage has shot up from 7 per cent in 1990 to 94 per cent today. The techniques employed included discussions on sanitation and the adverse health impacts of using open latrines. Also kept as a precondition for allotting a tubewell in the area was an integrated programme for installing 10 sanitary latrines.