Girls cover their faces to protect themselves from the stench of a filthy and malfunctioning restroom in their school. at this school, girls have no toilets of their own and their only option is to use the ones on the far side of the buildings where the boys study. They do not have locking doors and are several minutes’ walk from a water point. ©2017 Paula Bronstein for Human Rights Watch

By Heather Barr and Amanda Klasing
LONDON/WASHINGTON DC, Nov 15 2017 (IPS)

“I never come here, just because of boys,” Atifa says, pointing at the door of the stall. “They’re opening the door.” Atifa, a sixth grader in Kabul, Afghanistan, attends a school of 650 girls. Since they study in tents in a vacant lot, the only toilets the girls have access to are on the far side of the boys’ school next door. The school is one of a very few for girls in the area, so some students walk over an hour each way to get there.

The toilets in the boys’ school consist of two separate blocks of pit toilets with four stalls per block. Both blocks are used by the boys, none of the stalls have locking doors, and none are reserved for  the girls’ use. On the day Atifa showed Human Rights Watch around, the floors were awash with urine and feces.

The school’s only water point—for drinking, handwashing, and any other uses— is a several-minute walk down a hill. Girls using the toilets have to cope with sexual harassment from male students on the way there, and boys trying to open the stall doors while girls are using the toilet.

When we interviewed girls, parents, and experts about this situation for a new report they said  that lack of access to toilets is a major barrier to education for girls in Afghanistan. Sixty  percent of schools here do not have toilets, 85 percent of out-of-school children are girls, and two-thirds of girls ages 12 to 15 are out of school.

Lack of access to toilets is a major barrier to education for girls in Afghanistan. 60% of schools here do not have toilets, 85% of out-of-school children are girls, and two-thirds of girls ages 12 to 15 are out of school.
Lack of access to clean, safe, private toilets is a major barrier around the world to girls like Atifa, and it’s an issue that disproportionately affects girls. No child should have to attend a school without toilets. But put bluntly, where toilets are not available it is easier–and more socially accepted–for boys to urinate outside than for girls, even in countries with far less strict views on girls’ behavior than Afghanistan.

When girls reach puberty and begin menstruation, the problem becomes even worse. Without privacy in the toilets, somewhere to dispose of waste or clean reusable hygiene materials, and running water in close proximity to toilets, girls face great difficulty managing menstrual hygiene. This leads many girls to stay home during their periods, and as these absences accumulate, they fall behind on their studies, suffer poor academic achievement, and are at increased risk of dropping out completely.

Countries around the world have recognized the need to reach universal coverage for sanitation—put simply people should be able to use a safe, hygienic toilet wherever they are—home, work, the hospital, and, yes, at school. As part of the global sustainable development goals– the 17 goals agreed upon by the United Nations in 2015 as part of a new sustainable development agenda– governments have set ambitious targets to end open defecation and achieve universal access to basic sanitation services by 2030.

Such a clarion call is nearly herculean. Six out of every 10 people in the world lack safely managed sanitation. That is 4.5 billion people. Given these numbers, it is easy to conclude a safe toilet is a privilege of the rich and urban, not a universal right.

Today is World Toilet Day. An odd thing to celebrate, perhaps. Yet, given those numbers it’s easy to see why we should stop and consider the humble toilet and all the benefits it provides to those who have access to it. For starters, those of us who can use the toilet and wash our hands are at reduced risk of the diarrheal diseases that claim the lives of more than 350,000 children a year.

But sanitation is more than just a privilege or a tool to prevent disease. It is a fundamental human right, one that can  enable people to realize other rights—like the right to health. For girls like Atifa, a simple, safe and private toilet can be essential to putting education within reach.

Governments will face many competing demands as they work to try to reach universal coverage by 2030. In the crush of priorities, there is a grave risk that the most marginalized and vulnerable will be left behind. In Afghanistan and in places around the world where girls have to fight and struggle to receive a basic education, toilets in school for girls should  not be lost in the shuffle.

Excerpt:

In Nepal, 38 percent of the population still defecates in the open. Credit: Naresh Newar/IPS

By Thalif Deen
UNITED NATIONS, May 28 2014 (IPS)

At the height of his election campaign last October, Narendra Modi, India’s Hindu nationalist leader, briefly set aside his spiritual aspirations when he told a surprised audience that economic development should take precedence over religion.

“Toilets before temples,” pleaded Modi, the newly-elected prime minister of India, a country which has been in the throes of a perpetual sanitation crisis, and where open defecation is an all-too-common sight in villages and urban slums.

As chief minister of the state of Gujarat, Modi oversaw the installation of some 76,000 lavatories in schools “so that more girls could study,” according to an article in the Economist last month.

"The situation [...] is most difficult in India where there are nearly 800 million people without basic sanitation, and 600 million of those are still practising open defecation." -- Barbara Frost, chief executive at the London-based WaterAid
As if taking its cue from Modi, or by happy coincidence, the United Nations Wednesday formally launched a global campaign to help improve access to toilets for the 2.5 billion people without basic level sanitation.

“It is time to talk about open defecation,” said U.N. Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson, “and to discuss the facts, the consequences and the solutions.”

And it is time to talk about the many countries around the world where community members, local leaders and politicians are taking positive action to end this practice, he added.

According to the United Nations, about 82 percent of the 1.1 billion people practising open defecation live in just 10 countries: India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Sudan, Niger, Nepal, China and Mozambique.

By 2025, the practice of open defecation must be totally eliminated, the United Nations has vowed.

Barbara Frost, chief executive at the London-based WaterAid, told IPS South Asia still has the most people without basic sanitation, more than one billion in 2012, although sub-Saharan Africa also has a large number, just fewer than 644 million.

“The situation by sheer numbers is most difficult in India where there are nearly 800 million people without basic sanitation, and 600 million of those are still practising open defecation,” she said.

In sub-Saharan Africa, Nigeria is bucking the trend and has seen large increases in open defecation between 2000 and 2012.

“Many African nations are seeing the number of people without basic sanitation drop, but in Nigeria this is increasing,” Frost said.

Chris Williams, executive director at the Geneva-based Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC), told IPS open defecation is a serious health risk in the world’s poorer countries, spreading disease, effecting economic productivity and claiming lives unnecessarily.

“People who do not have access to a hygienic toilet and a place to wash their hands are exposed to an array of faecally transmissible and potentially deadly diseases that with improved sanitation are easily preventable,” he said.

“That is why we have to make equitable access to improved sanitation a key priority in the post-2015 development agenda,” Williams added.

He also said sanitation and hygiene are motors which drive health, and social and economic development around the world.

“An environment that lacks sanitation and clean water is an environment where achieving other development goals is an impossible dream,” declared Williams.

Mark Neo, deputy permanent representative of Singapore, a country that spearheaded the move to declare Nov. 19 ‘World Toilet Day’ at the United Nations, told IPS the lack of basic sanitation profoundly impacts key constituencies like women and girls.

For example, without proper toilet facilities, women and girls constantly risk rape and sexual assault while defecating in the open, and pubescent girls drop out of school because of the lack of privacy, he said.

Accordingly, for its commemoration of World Toilet Day this year, Singapore is planning an event focusing on the unique and particular challenges of open defecation for women and girls.

“There are taboos within taboos, so we want to focus on the unique vulnerabilities of women without access to basic sanitation and toilets,” he added.

Neo said the U.N.’s Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target of providing basic sanitation is lagging behind other MDGs and is unlikely to be achieved by 2015.

Therefore, it is critical that sanitation remains prominent in the post-2015 development agenda both as a stand-alone goal and mainstreamed into other goals under the agenda.

The U.N.’s campaign against open defecation will run through the end of 2015.

Mother, an independent advertising agency in the United Kingdom, has given time and expertise on a pro bono basis to develop campaign ideas and materials, according to the United Nations.

Where there is open defecation, pathogens spread quickly, causing diarrhoea, cholera, bilharzia (caused by freshwater worms) and other diseases, according to WaterAid.

More than 1,400 children die each day of diarrhoeal diseases linked to a lack of safe water, basic sanitation and good hygiene.

Williams told IPS the sanitation movement supports millions each year to build a toilet for their household, assisted by programmes such as the WSSCC’s Global Sanitation Fund and development partners such as the World Bank and the U.N. children’s agency UNICEF.

“Together we are helping rural communities to stop open defecation and wash their hands of disease spread by poor sanitation once and for all.”

Between 1990 and 2012, open defecation decreased from 24 percent to 14 percent globally. South Asia saw the largest decline from 65 percent to 38 percent, according to WSSCC.

But there are stark disparities across regions, between urban and rural areas, and between the rich and the poor and marginalised.

The vast majority of those without sanitation are poorer people living in rural areas. Yet, progress on sanitation has often increased inequality by primarily benefitting wealthier people, according to WSSCC.

WSSCC’s Global Sanitation Fund (GSF) has helped support 2.7 million people using toilets, enabled 3.7 million people in more than 14,400 communities to live in cleaner environments free of open defecation and helped 4.2 million people wash their hands with soap.

The GSF has committed 86 million dollars in 11 country programmes worldwide, according to WSSCC.

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An open drainage ditch in Madagascar. Credit: Lova Rabary-Rakontondravony/IPS

By Thalif Deen
UNITED NATIONS, Nov 16 2013 (IPS)

The United Nations has a longstanding tradition of commemorating political milestones – like the abolition of the slave trade – or sustaining day-long vigils on controversial issues such as a ban on nuclear tests.

The annual events have covered a wide range of political, social and economic issues on a 24-hour timeline, including World Cancer Day, World Press Freedom Day, World Refugee Day, World AIDS Day, World Population Day and World Water Day."An environment that lacks sanitation and clean water is an environment where achieving other development goals is an impossible dream." -- Dr. Chris Williams

But for some unaccountable reason, the United Nations continued to sidestep a growing problem facing over 2.5 billion people: lack of adequate sanitation.

So last July, the 193-member U.N. General Assemby (UNGA) adopted a resolution, initiated by Singapore, to declare Nov. 19 “World Toilet Day,” the first-ever in the 68-year history of the United Nations.

“The name is catchy and humourous,” says the statement by Singapore, “But it serves to capture the public’s attention, and focus on the challenges of sanitation and toilets.”

The resolution, which was co-sponsored by 121 member states, calls for greater attention to the global sanitation crisis through the commemoration of World Toilet Day next week.

Asked why sanitation has remained a neglected goal in the U.N.’s development agenda, Mark Neo, deputy permanent represent of Singapore to the United Nations, told IPS sanitation was not originally included in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and was agreed upon in the 2002 Rio+10 conference in Johannesburg, for inclusion.

“More importantly, sanitation is not just about toilets and infrastructure, it is about social and behavioural changes which cannot be achieved overnight and will take time,” he said.

Despite these obstacles, much progress has been made. Since 1990, 1.8 billion people have gained access to improved sanitation, and the number of people who practice open defecation has been reduced by 272 million, he pointed out.

“However, the sad reality is that one billion people still practice open defecation and 2.5 billion do not have adequate sanitation facilities,” Neo said.

Against this backdrop, Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson’s recent “Call to Action on Sanitation” and the consensus adoption of the resolution on World Toilet Day” are timely and useful in highlighting the need to make progress on the continuing challenge of sanitation,” he added.

Dr. Chris Williams, executive director of the Geneva-based Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC), told IPS sanitation and hygiene are motors which drive health, social and economic development around the world.

“An environment that lacks sanitation and clean water is an environment where achieving other development goals is an impossible dream. The time to act is now,” he added.

In its campaign to help resolve the world’s sanitation crisis, the government of Singapore is partnering with the World Toilet Organisation (WTO), a Singapore-based NGO, founded in 2001, with 534 members, who are mostly local toilet associations.

WTO founder Jack Sim (known affectionately as “Mr Toilet”) will be at the United Nations to take part in the commemoration.

“When we were children, our parents told not to talk about (poo),” Sim told IPS. “This is a really serious problem. What you don’t talk about, you cannot improve.”

Fleur Anderson, head of campaigns at the London-based WaterAid, told IPS next week’s commemoration is not just the creation of yet another “U.N. Day”, but a strong sign that governments recognise that toilets-for-all is essential for saving children’s lives.

“We’ll certainly be working with others to use World Toilet Day to draw the attention of governments to the enormous scale of the problem,” Anderson said.

WaterAid will also be launching a report next week, jointly with the WSSCC and Unilever, highlighting the huge impact sanitation has on women’s lives and calling for a collaborative approach between governments, civil society and business to get the MDG sanitation target – halving the number of people without adequate sanitation – back on track.

Emma Pfister, manager of social media and partnerships at Water for People, told IPS it is not enough to keep throwing money at the problem and building more toilets.

“We’ve seen that this approach doesn’t work, resulting in wasted investment and greater challenges for the world’s poorest,” she said. “Our goal at Water for People is to ensure every family, school and clinic has sustainable access to an adequate toilet – and that means a toilet that continues to work.”

Officially observing World Toilet Day is a great step toward making sanitation a priority on the global agenda, Pfister noted.

“And while it helps to raise awareness and funds, we must also demand more effective solutions that result in lasting impact,” she said. “We must change the way aid is spent and hold U.N. agencies, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and governments accountable for their work intervening in people’s lives.”

Projecting into the future, Neo told IPS there is insufficient time left to achieve the MDG target on sanitation by 2015. At the current rate of progress, he pointed out, there will still be 936 million people practicising open defecation in 2015.

“Therefore it is important that sanitation features prominently in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the post-2015 development agenda that follows MDGs.”

Economically, Neo said, poor sanitation costs countries 0.5 to 7.0 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP), while the gains globally from investing in sanitation amount to about 260 billion dollars annually.

WaterAid Chief Executive Barbara Frost told IPS that at the turn of the millennium, world leaders promised to halve the proportion of people living without access to a basic toilet by 2015. At current rates of progress, around half a billion people will have to wait another decade before they get this basic service they were promised.

“We can and should be doing better [because] it is basic services we are talking about that can transform lives,” she said.

Nearly 2.5 billion people around the world don’t have access to sanitation. Credit: Charles Mpaka/IPS

By Isolda Agazzi
GENEVA, Nov 18 2012 (IPS)

Organisers of this year’s World Toilet Day, which falls on Nov. 19, are using the slogan ‘I give a shit – do you?’ to break the silence around the crucial issue of sanitation and remind the international community that 2.5 billion people around the world don’t have access to clean and private toilets.

Improving these figures, and achieving the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of halving the number of people without basic sanitation by 2015, needs a change of mindset and strong political will, not financial resources, campaigners say.

“(One and a half) billion people, or 15 percent of the world’s population, are still defecating in the open. Of the MDG targets for 2015, sanitation is the furthest off track… (At) the current rate it will only be reached in 2026,” Saskia Castelein, advocacy and communications officer at the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) told IPS.

This Geneva-based organisation, created by a United Nations resolution, was responsible for making sanitation an MDG target at the 2002 Johannesburg Summit on Sustainable Development.

“In the last ten years, sanitation has made a lot of progress in terms of awareness and community approaches,” Castelein continued. An increasing number of “people and organisations are working around the issue and (are using) the MDG framework to lobby governments. Now there is more money, but challenges are still enormous.”

Jack Sim, founder of the World Toilet Organisation and initiator of World Toilet Day, is of the opinion that “What we don’t discuss, we can’t improve.”

Sim has been instrumental in putting the issue of sanitation on the international agenda.

“Over the last 12 years, World Toilet Day has become an amazing movement for everyone to support better toilets and sanitation conditions around the world. It has also become a day of creativity as people all over the globe celebrate it in their own style,” he added.

Much progress has been made in India, China and other parts of East Asia, with China being the most likely to meet the goal on time.

But most of Asia and sub-Saharan Africa are still riddled with problems, with only three countries – Botswana, Cape Verde and Angola – on track.

Various studies have shown that each dollar spent on sanitation brings a return of five dollars, yet the world has been slow to make progress because, according to Castelein, the issue is surrounded by taboos.

She argues that policymakers are reluctant to bring such an “unglamorous topic” into the limelight and governments are hesitant to interfere in this most private aspect of people’s lives.

Meanwhile cultural customs and habits are compounding the problem.

“In some places, it is a social tradition to defecate in the open,” a practice that often leads to the spread of diseases like cholera and typhoid, she said.

Diarrhoeal diseases, a direct consequence of poor sanitation, are the second most common cause of death among young children in developing countries, killing more than HIV/AIDS, malaria and measles combined, and resulting in one death every 20 seconds.

Thus, experts argue, improving sanitation in the developing would also expedite the fourth MDG – improving child health and reducing under-five mortality by two-thirds in the next three years.

Reluctance to embrace modern sanitation can be solved by “a community-driven approach,” Castelein said, with development practitioners going from village to village and “training the trainers” on the importance of proper sanitation.

According to Castelein, there is no need to invest millions of dollars into building water-flush toilets all over the world – all that is needed is a global effort to promote basic hygiene by educating people about simple steps like washing their hands with ash, which is a good disinfectant.

Many people, particularly in the developing world, are unaware that sanitation was proclaimed a basic human right by the U.N. general assembly in 2010. Increased awareness of this right could push people to pressure their governments to provide proper facilities.

Campaigners also point out that proper sanitation facilities are crucial for women and girls during menstruation; according to a study by Plan India, 23 percent of Indian girls drop out of school when they reach puberty. World Toilet Day demands safe and appropriate toilet facilities to keep them in school, thus overlapping with the MDG of eliminating gender disparities in primary and secondary education.

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