Sanitation is one of the worst public services in Brazil. While 92.7% of homes have electricity and 75.2% have access to the water network, only 47% of households have sewage collection services.
Moreover, only one in three Brazilians have sewage collection and treatment services simultaneously.
Only 20% of sewage produced is treated, meaning the other 80% ends up in rivers, lakes, fountains and the ocean.
The statistics are from a study carried out by the Getúlio Vargas Foundation (FGV) at the request of the Intituto Trata Brasil (ITB), an NGO set up at the end of last year by companies interested in developing this sector.
To learn more about the sector, the consequences of low service coverage and possible solutions, BNamericas spoke with ITB executive director Raul Graça Couto Pinho.
