1.5 million children die due to unclean water

A report by Unicef has revealed that 1.5 million children die each year due to unclean water and insufficient sanitation systems.

Success in improving this situation has been apparent, with 1.2 billion people gaining access to clean water since 1990.

However, in sub-Saharan Africa the situation is still extremely bad and Unicef told the BBC that Niger was a prime example of this crisis.

Only 13 per cent of the population in Niger has access to suitable toilet facilities and Unicef deputy-director, Vanessa Tobin, states that it "certainly is a contributing factor in the cholera outbreaks".

Access to clean water also needs to be coupled with better sanitation, because without this Ms Tobin believes there will be no real health benefits.

Unicef stated: "Conclusions are mixed: while impressive progress has been made in expanding water coverage, millions are still without safe water.

"When it comes to sanitation, the report finds that the situation is even worse."

The full report will be presented today (September 28th) in New York and will detail Unicef's plans to tackle the on-going problem.

The UN hopes to halve the number of people without access to clean water and sanitation by 2015 and points to the changes in South Asia as a marker.