15 Million Indians Still Defecate In The Open
Since 2014, India has seen 110 million toilets built for its citizens. Despite the extraordinary progress rate, we are yet to achieve complete sanitation.
TOILETS INSIDE, DISEASES
OUTSIDE
Toilets are the excretory system of society. They dispose of the harmful body waste we produce every day. Sanitation provided to each family is the basis of the entire community’s health. And when it comes to women’s dignity, having a clean toilet at home can make a world of difference. The Government of India’s Swachh Bharat Mission is to make the country open defecation free, and we are promoting that mission through a variety of sanitation initiatives.
OUR APPROACH
Aligned to the global vision and mission, our goal is to create lasting impact towards promoting high-quality sanitation services, accessible to all and locally sustained by strong institutions, government and private sector. Our key strategic choice is Sustainable Sanitation at Scale through Market System Development. Sustainable sanitation does not only rely on the provision of technology and services but also on proper usage. Behaviour Change is a critical component of improving access to and practices around sanitation.
Here’s how we do it:
Rural Latrine Building
Building on Swachh Bharat Mission’s momentum to make India open defecation free by 2019, we have fostered partnerships with local governments and microfinance institutions to develop robust sanitation markets to meet the increased demand for household latrines. Our hands-off approach entails establishing local supply chains, providing technical and marketing support to start-up enterprises, and creating a favourable ecosystem for investment in sanitation businesses. We work with a diverse group of agencies such as Self Help Groups (SHGs) and their federations, Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) and governmental organizations to ensure sanitation enterprises and local families have access to diverse funding options. We have been instrumental in the development and proliferation of sanitation enterprises, also called Points of Purchase (PoPs) – one stop shops providing hardware components and masonry services for toilet construction, renovation and upgrade – in Bihar and Odisha.
Community Latrines in Urban Areas
We work with the support of funding partners to renovate community latrine blocks in urban or peri-urban slum areas. In areas where we work, a “mohalla” (neighbourhood) committee is created or strengthened for operation and maintenance of the facilities. These committees obtain financial contributions from the users to cover the cost of cleaning, including a caretaker, cleaning products and minor repairs. Our next objective is to overcome the project’s dependency on donations for growth and scaling.
Community Latrines in Urban Areas
We work with the support of funding partners to renovate community latrine blocks in urban or peri-urban slum areas. In areas where we work, a “mohalla” (neighbourhood) committee is created or strengthened for operation and maintenance of the facilities. These committees obtain financial contributions from the users to cover the cost of cleaning, including a caretaker, cleaning products and minor repairs. Our next objective is to overcome the project’s dependency on donations for growth and scaling.
Faecal Sludge Management
Faecal Sludge Management (FSM) is central to achieving the vision of an ‘Open Defecation Free’ India. Developing solutions to challenges of FSM therefore has an important place in the sanitation ecosystem. If sanitation is to be managed safely, it is important to go beyond the construction of toilets and examine collection, emptying, transport, treatment and reuse or disposal of faecal waste. Over the years, we have been working in each of the above mentioned components along the sanitation value chain and have developed many innovative solutions. Some of these include: Membrane-based septage treatment system, Mechanical Pit emptying devices, Modular collection systems, E-catalogues, and Ring-Lifting device to name a few.
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million people reached with
sanitation services
Bringing Safety to Numbers
Addressing WASH requirements for 1,700 students in Hooghly, West Bengal suddenly appears easy. Dr. Partho Pratim Mukhopadhyay, Headmaster of the Bagati Ramgopal Ghosh High School is categorical in his praise for Water For People India’s work as part of ITC Limited Mission Sunehra Kal Initiative. “These two organizations have supported the construction of improved water and sanitation facilities in the school and enabled a learning environment. I am deeply indebted to the organizations,” he states up front and he is clear about why…
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