World Toilet Day
As 'World Toilet Day 2019' approaches, I thought it would be fitting to continue my series of blogs with an introduction to how a lack of adequate toilets is a fundamental part of the sanitation crisis. The website for World Toilet Day describes these facilities not just as toilets, but as 'life-savers' and 'opportunity-makers' (WTD). Its purpose is to draw attention to those whose suffering is overlooked, those who lack in adequate sanitation and safe facilities.
673 million people still practise open defecation worldwide (WTD), toilets remain at the forefront of the sanitation crisis as arguably the biggest issue to tackle. We often take for granted our ceramic flush toilets that allow for convenient urination and defecation. For millions in the developing world, toilets do not constitute of anything more than a uncomplicated collection device such as a plastic bag informally known as the 'flying toilet'. Lusambili describes the process as 'dirty and unhygienic, yet organised, solving the problem of waste disposal for the majority of slum dwellers' (2011, 1)*. It is remarkable how solutions and systems can emerge from the bare minimum and make-shift measures can prevail as somewhat efficient.
Flying toilets must be apprehended within their social contexts; they serve as one of the only options for a large proportion of the urban poor. Many slums are not recognised by governments as legal and authorised settlements with the main justification being that they circumvent the tax-system. This means that local councils do not feel obligated to invest in these settlements or provide basic infrastructure which includes toilets and sewerage systems. Kibera slum, located in Nairobi, has almost become synonymous with the flying toilet. From a study conducted in Kibera, Lusambili (2011) finds that there are three existing toilet facilities available to residents: private toilets, community toilets, and CBO toilets. However, through a series of interviews, the many reasons that people resorted to the method of flying toilets were uncovered. These included things such as fear of being raped, long queues, unaffordability and a lack of light during the night (Lusambili: 2011, 11). Residents seem to discuss these existing toilet facilities pejoratively which demonstrates the complexity of the problem - simply placing a toilet within a slum is not sufficient. This results in roofs used to harvest water also being used as depositories for flying toilets. Thus, the vicious cycle of water polluted with faecal matter leading to a chain of illness and disease is perpetuated.
Figure 1: World Mapper (based on data from 2015)
Figure one displays a global map proportionate to the number of people who practice 'Open Defacation in Rural Areas'. The highest rate of population who practice open defecation live in Ethiopia, more than 75% of the population. Whilst in rural Eritrea, this figure is as high as 90% (World Mapper).
Ending open defecation an attainable goal. Quinara in Guinea-Bissau, for example, became the first region to be classed as 'open defecation free' (UNICEF). This behavioural change also incorporates hygiene practices such as hand-washing as well as pledging to use these toilets (built by the locals). This can be attributed to the community being educated on the dangers that faecal matter in the home or near a water source can bring and ultimately working together to end the practice of open defecation.
The matter of the adequate provision of toilet facilities is extensive therefore, this blog can only serve as a compact introduction and reminder that World Water Day will be among us shortly. I hope, through this, that I have demonstrated the stark contrasts that exist in regards to the experiences of toilets.
*Lusambili, A. (2011) ‘It is our Dirty Little Secret’: An Ethnographic Study of the Flying Toilets in Kibera Slums, Nairobi, STEPS Working Paper 44, Brighton: STEPS Centre
673 million people still practise open defecation worldwide (WTD), toilets remain at the forefront of the sanitation crisis as arguably the biggest issue to tackle. We often take for granted our ceramic flush toilets that allow for convenient urination and defecation. For millions in the developing world, toilets do not constitute of anything more than a uncomplicated collection device such as a plastic bag informally known as the 'flying toilet'. Lusambili describes the process as 'dirty and unhygienic, yet organised, solving the problem of waste disposal for the majority of slum dwellers' (2011, 1)*. It is remarkable how solutions and systems can emerge from the bare minimum and make-shift measures can prevail as somewhat efficient.
Flying toilets must be apprehended within their social contexts; they serve as one of the only options for a large proportion of the urban poor. Many slums are not recognised by governments as legal and authorised settlements with the main justification being that they circumvent the tax-system. This means that local councils do not feel obligated to invest in these settlements or provide basic infrastructure which includes toilets and sewerage systems. Kibera slum, located in Nairobi, has almost become synonymous with the flying toilet. From a study conducted in Kibera, Lusambili (2011) finds that there are three existing toilet facilities available to residents: private toilets, community toilets, and CBO toilets. However, through a series of interviews, the many reasons that people resorted to the method of flying toilets were uncovered. These included things such as fear of being raped, long queues, unaffordability and a lack of light during the night (Lusambili: 2011, 11). Residents seem to discuss these existing toilet facilities pejoratively which demonstrates the complexity of the problem - simply placing a toilet within a slum is not sufficient. This results in roofs used to harvest water also being used as depositories for flying toilets. Thus, the vicious cycle of water polluted with faecal matter leading to a chain of illness and disease is perpetuated.
Figure 1: World Mapper (based on data from 2015)
Figure one displays a global map proportionate to the number of people who practice 'Open Defacation in Rural Areas'. The highest rate of population who practice open defecation live in Ethiopia, more than 75% of the population. Whilst in rural Eritrea, this figure is as high as 90% (World Mapper).
Ending open defecation an attainable goal. Quinara in Guinea-Bissau, for example, became the first region to be classed as 'open defecation free' (UNICEF). This behavioural change also incorporates hygiene practices such as hand-washing as well as pledging to use these toilets (built by the locals). This can be attributed to the community being educated on the dangers that faecal matter in the home or near a water source can bring and ultimately working together to end the practice of open defecation.
The matter of the adequate provision of toilet facilities is extensive therefore, this blog can only serve as a compact introduction and reminder that World Water Day will be among us shortly. I hope, through this, that I have demonstrated the stark contrasts that exist in regards to the experiences of toilets.
*Lusambili, A. (2011) ‘It is our Dirty Little Secret’: An Ethnographic Study of the Flying Toilets in Kibera Slums, Nairobi, STEPS Working Paper 44, Brighton: STEPS Centre
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