Some 40 children die each day of diarrhea and other water borne diseases in Nepal, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said in Kathmandu Tuesday.

"In Nepal, access to clean water and sanitation are also critically important to the health of children," UNICEF Representative to Nepal Dr. Suomi Sakai said.

In a statement to mark the World Water Day, Sakai said that the diseases also weaken thousands of children in the country.

According to a UNICEF report "State of the World's Children 2005," 21 percent of children in developing countries are severely water deprived living without a safe water source within a 15-minute walk of their homes.

The United Nations General Assembly at its 58th session in December 2003 had agreed to proclaim the years decade 2005-2015 as the International Decade for Action, "Water for Life" and beginning with the World Water Day on March 22, 2005.

To observe the occasion, Nepal is also organizing various activities and events, in which, clean up campaigns, art and essay competitions for school children and awareness sessions will be held in parts of the country.

Source: Xinhua