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Open defecation is the practice of people defecating outside and not into a designated toilet. The term is widely used in literature about water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) issues in developing countries. Open defecation causes public health problems in areas where people defecate in fields, urban parks, rivers and open trenches in close proximity to the living space of others. Eliminating open defecation is the main aim of improving access to sanitation worldwide and is a proposed indicator for the Sustainable Development Goals. Even if toilets are available, people still need to be convinced to refrain from open defecation and use toilets. Therefore, the need for behaviour change is critical in addition to the provision of toilets. A preference for open defecation behavior may be due to traditional cultural practices or lack of access to toilets, or both. Extreme poverty and lack of sanitation are statistically linked; eliminating open defecation is said to be an important part of development efforts. High levels of open defecation in a country are usually correlated with a high child mortality, as well as high levels of undernutrition, high levels of poverty and large disparities between the rich and poor.〔JMP (2014). (Progress on drinking water and sanitation, 2014 Update ). WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation (JMP), ISBN 978 92 4 150724 0, page 11.〕 About one billion people, or 15 percent of the global population, practice open defecation.〔JMP (2014). (Progress on drinking water and sanitation, 2014 Update ). WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation (JMP), ISBN 978 92 4 150724 0 - Summary, page v〕 India is the country with the highest number of people practicing open defecation: around 600 million people or nearly half of the population.〔〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=With 58% figures, India tops in open defecation )〕 Most of it occurs in rural areas, where the prevalence is estimated at 65 percent of the population.〔JMP (2014). (Progress on drinking water and sanitation, 2014 Update ). WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation (JMP), ISBN 978 92 4 150724 0, Annex 3: Country, area or territory estimates on sanitation and drinking water〕 The other countries with the highest number of people openly defecating are Indonesia (54 million people), followed by Pakistan (41 million people), Nigeria (39 million), Ethiopia (34 million), and Sudan (17 million).〔 == Background == Whilst open defecation causes little harm when done in sparsely populated areas, forests or camping type situations, it becomes a significant public health issue - and an issue for human dignity - when it occurs in more densely populated areas. Open defecation perpetuates the vicious cycle of disease and poverty and is widely regarded as an affront to personal dignity.〔 The countries where open defecation is most widely practised have the highest numbers of deaths of children under the age of five, as well as high levels of undernutrition, high levels of poverty, and large disparities between the rich and poor.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「open defecation」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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