World Toilet Day (WTD) officially established by the United Nations in 2013, is held annually on November 19 to raise awareness of global sanitation issues and promote the goal of clean toilets and sanitation for all.

The theme for World Toilet Day 2024 is “Toilets: A Place for Peace.” This theme highlights that toilets are not only an essential part of daily life but also a key facility for safeguarding public health and dignity.

However, access to clean drinking water and sanitation facilities remains a critical issue that needs great attention worldwide. According to United Nations data, approximately 40% of the global population lacks access to safe drinking water, and the lack of sanitation facilities further exacerbates the spread of infectious diseases, particularly in developing countries and conflict zones. This situation is not only a challenge in the field of public health, but also an important consideration for social equity, economic development, and environmental sustainability.

Sanitary facilities play a significant role in urban areas. They are an essential component of modern urban infrastructure, directly impacting residents' quality of life and health. With the acceleration of urbanization, ensuring effective provision and maintenance of sanitary facilities has become a key factor in promoting sustainable urban development.

This issue of In Focus will focus on urban sanitation facilities, introducing several typical cases that have taken innovative measures in this area. Through these cases, we will see how to enhance public health standards and drive cities towards a healthier and more sustainable future by implementing diverse solutions.

Pimpri Chinchwad, India

Navi Disha community toilet model

Shortlisted Initiative 2023 

The access of families living in informal settlements to sanitation facilities is low in the Indian city of Pimpri Chinshwad. The municipality decided to address this problem by constructing community toilets in slums. Under the initiative, women from the targeted communities have formed groups that have taken responsibility for operating and maintaining the community toilets.

The initiative was conceived through discussions with the communities. The community members identified operation and maintenance challenges and suggested the assigning of this responsibility to women’s groups. Despite training in community toilet management, the municipality also makes a monthly payment to each women’s group to cover the cost of sanitation equipment and cleaning materials to generate revenue streams for the women’s groups.

The initiative is a good example of gender mainstreaming in the sanitation value chain and also of effective public-community partnerships. Besides reimbursing costs and providing training, the municipality also provides management support to the women’s groups with end-to-end operating manuals, streamlined procedures and effective monitoring systems.

Learn more:

http://www.guangzhouaward.org/a/3323.html?lang=en

Kampala, Uganda

An innovation for pit-emptying services using a GIS-enabled application

Winning Initiative 2023 

Kampala, Uganda’s capital city, has a population of 1,738,000. Over 60% of this population lives in informal housing, while only between 10% and 15% of the city is connected to the formal sewerage system. 90% of the population relies on the on-site sanitation model, making waste-emptying services unavoidable for many residents. Pit latrines and septic tanks are often emptied haphazardly into the environment by vendors providing these services.

It is within this context that the Weyonje App was developed and introduced. Citizens can use the app on their mobile phones to order emptying services that are monitored until the sludge is successfully delivered to the regulated dumpsite. Citizens without smartphones, especially those living in poor informal settlements, have the option to contact the Village Health Team (VHT), which requests the service on their behalf using the Weyonje Village Health Team Application.

The App ensures that the faecal sludge is safely transported and managed at the treatment plant. Data from the App feeds digitally into the city’s data management dashboard enabling the city to track progress and gaps in the emptying service.

Learn more:

http://www.guangzhouaward.org/a/3320.html?lang=en

Berhampur, India

Faecal Sludge and Septage Management (FSSM) in Berhampur

Shortlisted Initiative 2020 

Berhampur is an ancient and densely populated city in Odisha province. Before 2017, the city did not have an underground sewer system, and the toilets were connected directly to septic tanks, thus disposal of faecal sludge, creating health and environmental challenges for the city.

In response, Berhampur passed a resolution to adopt the Faecal Sludge and Septage Management (FSSM) Regulations 2018, making it mandatory for all cesspool emptier vehicles to dispose faecal waste at the treatment plant. Over 700 women Self-Help Groups have been building sanitary toilets to safely contain faecal waste, promoting mechanized emptying of septic tanks, operating and managing septage treatment plants, and reusing treated sludge.

The initiative has enhanced the incomes of the collectives, ensured community participation and ownership for sustainable FSSM, and promoted women’s empowerment.

Learn more:

http://www.guangzhouaward.org/a/1321.html?lang=en

Guangzhou, China

Sanitation Improvements Drive the Development of Civilized Rural Areas 

In recent years, Guangzhou has regarded rural toilets—a seemingly “small” issue—as a significant “big” project within its rural revitalization strategy and efforts to improve the rural living environment. With the goal of enhancing farmers’ quality of life and ecological well-being, the city has fully implemented the “three major programs” of constructing, upgrading, and maintaining rural toilets. By improving “small toilets,” Guangzhou has achieved “big benefits for people’s well-being,” significantly enhancing the rural living environment and ecological livability, while injecting fresh momentum into the development of civilized rural areas.

Guangzhou’s rural toilet initiative focuses on meeting the practical needs of villagers and ensuring convenience for residents. It involves building new facilities, upgrading existing ones, and opening some for public use.The city has achieved a 100% coverage rate of harmless sanitary household toilets in rural areas. A total of 2,264 rural public toilets have been built or renovated, and 731 toilets at village committee offices have been opened to the public. This has addressed the shortage of rural public toilets, optimized their distribution, and explored the creation of a “15-minute toilet access network” in rural areas, effectively solving the problems of “difficulty accessing toilets” and “poor toilet facilities” in rural regions.

While driving the sanitation improvement initiative, Guangzhou has focused on integrating technological innovation with Lingnan culture to create distinctive and modern public sanitation facilities, transforming them into “beautiful windows” for Lingnan-style villages. In addition, Guangzhou has innovatively used recyclable building materials to 3D-print public toilets, promoting the green, low-carbon, and environmentally-friendly development of rural sanitation. Leveraging technology, the city has developed “Rest Stop + Smart Toilets” equipped with features such as sensor-activated flushing, automatic identification, voice alert, and zero-emission water recycling, providing both residents and visitors with real “convenient toilet access.”

Ramallah, Palestine

Ramallah City Stepping toward a Greener Future & Revolutionizing Municipal Services through GIS

Deserving Initiative 2023

Palestine has long faced disputes over the use and control of water resources, leading to widespread water scarcity in many areas. Ramallah has been particularly affected by chronic water shortages, with limited water supply exacerbating drought conditions and drinking water scarcity. Additionally, extreme summer temperatures, driven by climate change, have further intensified the water shortage.

The Ramallah Wastewater Treatment Plant (RWTP) has provided a transformative solution to this issue. By recycling wastewater for both public and private use, it has successfully increased the city’s available water supply, thus preserving drinking water. The project pumps treated wastewater from the treatment plant into six reservoirs located at the highest point in Ramallah, creating enough pressure to support the operation of a gravity-fed irrigation distribution network.

By transforming wastewater into a high-quality water source for both public and private use, Ramallah has taken a significant step towards a greener future. Through this initiative, the Ramallah Wastewater Treatment Plant (RWTP) is joining other cities worldwide in contributing solutions to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 6, working towards a more sustainable and environmentally-friendly future.

Learn more:

http://www.guangzhouaward.org/a/3379.html?lang=en