World Toilet Day Emphasizes Right to Sanitation

World Toilet Day is held every year on Nov. 19 as the United Nations’ (UN) way to raise awareness of the 3.4 billion people living without access to safe toilets. World Toilet Day is about accelerating action to tackle the global sanitation crisis and achieve Sustainable Development Goal 6: water and sanitation for all by 2030.

This year’s theme, “We’ll Always Need the Toilet,” calls for action to protect and expand access to sanitation in the face of mounting challenges: ageing infrastructure, rising demand, low investment, and the impact of climate change. Inadequate sanitation lets human waste and wastewater contaminate the environment, especially in densely populated areas. Children are particularly vulnerable to diseases, such as cholera, which are spread by exposure to untreated waste.

Unsafe or absent sanitation endangers people and perpetuates inequalities. Without access to clean, functional, lockable, gender-segregated toilets, women, girls, older people, and people with disabilities cannot fully participate in public spaces, workplaces and education. Additionally, lack of safe, private toilets and washing facilities in schools contribute to many girls regularly missing school days, particularly during menstruation.

Poorly managed wastewater and sanitation systems are significant sources of greenhouse gas emissions, particularly methane and nitrous oxide, contributing to the effects of the climate crisis, such as accelerating glacial loss. Sanitation services also must be resilient to climate-related disasters. For example, they must be able to withstand and be sustained during and after these events or recover quickly to protect public health.

Safely managed sanitation, including carefully reusing treated wastewater as a source of water, nutrients, and energy, is critical to reducing emissions, protecting ecosystems, and building a circular economy. The UN believes local and national authorities should allocate and increase sustained funding to sanitation and include it in plans for emergency response and climate mitigation and adaptation. Governments also have a duty to protect sanitation workers by ensuring legal protection, safe working environments, and fair wages. Employers should provide training, safety equipment, and access to healthcare.

For more information on World Toilet Day, click here.