Health + Well being

Safe drinking water, access to doctors, affordable medicine, clean toilets – it’s a no brainer. Yet still millions of people around the world do not have access to these basic needs.

In the next 24 hours diseases caused by unclean water and poor sanitation will claim the lives of 5,000 children. What is even more shocking is that most cases could be easily prevented.

For children the biggest killers are basic things we know how to treat and prevent like diarrhoea and pneumonia.

But it doesn’t stop there: illness prevents people from working, they don’t have enough money to pay for health fees and medicines - so not only are they trapped in the poverty cycle, it also damages the local economy.

But in many areas there are simply not enough hospitals, clinics and staff. One solution is to have an army of healthcare workers on the ground – simple but very effective.

Poor living conditions, being hungry and malnourished will weaken an immune system and make people more vulnerable to conditions such as diarrhoea and pneumonia. We stopped this happening in rich countries – and we can do it for poor countries too.

The Robin Hood Tax could raise billions very year to help provide essential healthcare, clean water and food in the world's poorest countries.