World Toilet Day should ignite discussion on sanitation issues

By Editor

 Yesterday  Tanzania marked the climax of the World Toilet Day and Sanitation Week. It is estimated that about 2.4 billion people do not have adequate sanitation worldwide.

The National Sanitation Week combines Global Hand-Washing Day and World Toilet Day which has been observed  on November 15 –19.

One billion people still defecate in the open. Poor sanitation increases the risk of disease and malnutrition, especially for women and children and Tanzania is no exception. 

This year, World Toilet Day and Sanitation Week  is focusing on the link between sanitation and nutrition, drawing the world’s attention to the importance of toilets in supporting better nutrition and improved health. 

Lack of access to clean drinking water and sanitation, along with the absence of good hygiene practices, are among the underlying causes of poor nutrition.

The aim of World Toilet Day is to raise awareness about the people in the world who don’t have access to a toilet, despite the fact that it is a human right to have clean water and sanitation. 

On this day people are encouraged to take action and help promote the idea that more needs to be done.  

   In Tanzania, about 30,000 people die each year from diarrhea. About 60 to 80 per cent of all out patients   had diseases caused by lack of water and sanitation. It is therefore important to urge citizens to wash fruits before eating and to always wash hands with soap and clean water after using the toilet.

In the same vein, 60 per cent of schools in the country do not have improved toilet facilities and very few have hand washing points and sanitation facilities for pupils with disabilities are rarely provided and that teachers and other staff suffer the same plight.

It is expected that the National Sanitation Campaign (NSC) will reach 1.52 million households in a span of four years and 812 schools will be provided with improved toilet facilities and hand washing points.

Therefore, the  best way to sustainably reduce life-threatening diseases such as diarrhea is through the use of safe drinking water, sanitation and improved hygiene practices. 

The state of sanitation – and hand-washing in particular – remains a useful indicator of human development in any community and Tanzania is no exception.

Sanitation has been a challenge not only to Tanzania but also to other developing countries in the world. Global Handwashing Day (GHWD) was introduced for the purpose of increasing awareness and understanding of the importance of hand-washing with soap, as an affordable way to prevent infectious diseases.

The GHWD, World Toilet Day (WTD) and Sanitation Week have proven to be useful platforms for igniting discussion surrounding sanitation and hygiene issues, both at national and local level. Through these events, various activities are being conducted across the country with the aim of creating avenues for advocacy to policy and decision makers, and to convey key messages to targeted groups, such as school children, and the general public at large.