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World Toilet Day: 'Leaving No One Behind'

by Dr. Kaushik Bharati on November 18, 2019 at 5:40 PM
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Highlights:

World Toilet Day is celebrated on 19th November every year. It aims to raise awareness about the importance of toilets and act as a catalyst to tackle the enormous global sanitation crisis. This sanitation crisis has resulted in the spread of water-borne diseases due to contamination of water supplies with untreated human excreta, which has entered the human food chain, affecting billions of people worldwide.

Aims of World Toilet Day

World Toilet Day draws attention to those people who have been deprived of safe sanitation facilities and highlights the socio-economic and environmental consequences arising from inaction. It, therefore, aims to accelerate global efforts to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6), which has a target to "eliminate open defecation and ensure that everyone has access to sustainable sanitation services by 2030". It lays special emphasis on the needs of women and girls, as well as those in vulnerable situations.

History of World Toilet Day

World Toilet Day was established by the World Toilet Organization in 2001, which was made an official United Nations (UN) day in 2013. The UN General Assembly designated 19th November as World Toilet Day through its Resolution (A/RES/67/291) entitled �Sanitation for All' in a bid to break taboos surrounding toilets and promote sanitation.


UN-Water is the UN's nodal agency that leads international organizations working on water and sanitation in UN Member States and urges them to encourage behavioral changes and implement policies that will increase access to sanitation facilities among the poor, thereby helping to end open defecation.

Theme for World Toilet Day 2019

The theme for World Toilet Day 2019 is �Leaving No One Behind', which aims to provide access to safe sanitation facilities for everyone, without leaving anyone behind, which is also the mandate of the SDGs.

‘World Toilet Day is celebrated annually on 19th November. It raises awareness about the importance of toilets and sanitation for maintaining health and preventing contamination of the environment by human waste.’

The theme highlights the fact that a toilet is not just a toilet; it's a life-saver, dignity-protector and opportunity-maker, as explained below:

Sanitation: Facts & Figures

�Safely Managed Sanitation' and its Importance

'Safely managed sanitation' refers to the use of hygienic toilet facilities that ensure safe disposal of excreta, preventing it from coming in contact with humans or causing environmental pollution by pathogenic agents.

Some types of toilets that enable implementation of safely managed sanitation include the following:

Safely managed sanitation is important with respect to the following aspects:

World Toilet Day Events in India - A Snapshot

Numerous events will be organized in various parts of India on the occasion of World Toilet Day. A snapshot of three such events is given below:

�Sanitation for All' and the Sustainable Development Goals: Are we on Track?

The Targets within Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6) include the following:

The world is off-track for meeting the targets set by the SDGs of ensuring �Sanitation for All by 2030'. Currently, only 40 out of 152 countries are on track for achieving �nearly universal' basic sanitation by 2030. Some of the reasons for falling behind on the SDG targets include the following:

The Way Forward

In order to �leave no one behind', stigma and taboos associated with toilets and sanitation must be removed, especially among poor, marginalized populations who have traditionally been ignored as they are hard to reach. These people often suffer the worst health consequences arising from poor sanitation in their communities. Hence, access to sanitation facilities must address the needs of marginalized populations and their voice must be heard by policymakers and decision-makers, so that funding can be increased and targeted at those who need it most.

The overall health benefits of sanitation can only be realized when everyone is included within its purview.

Conclusion

Thus, on World Toilet Day, let's all work collectively to expand access to safe toilets so that no one is left behind, as sanitation is a basic necessity and a human right.

References:
  1. World Toilet Day: This is Not Just a Toilet - (https:www.worldtoiletday.info/)
  2. World Toilet Day 19 November - (https:www.un.org/en/events/toiletday/)
  3. Factsheet: World Toilet Day - (https:www.worldtoiletday.info/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/10/WTD2019_factsheet_2019.pdf)
  4. Theme: World Toilet Day - (https:www.worldtoiletday.info/theme/)

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