| Public toilets in Zimbabwe | |
|---|---|
 School girls standing in front of a sign for public toilets | |
| Language of toilets | |
| Local words | chimbudzi |
| Men's toilets | Men |
| Women's toilets | Women |
| Public toilet statistics | |
| Toilets per 100,000 people | 1 (2021) |
| Total toilets | ?? |
| Public toilet use | |
| Type | Western style sit toilet |
| Locations | ??? |
| Average cost | ??? |
| Often equipped with | ??? |
| Percent accessible | ??? |
| Date first modern public toilets | ??? |
| . | |
Public toilets in Zimbabwe are rare, found at a rate of around one per 100,000 people. The most common type of toilet is a sit toilet, and toilet paper is rarely provided. Many charge an access fee to use.
Public toilets
editThe local word for public toilet is chimbudzi. [1]
A 2021 study found there was one public toilet per 100,000 people.[2] The most common type of toilet is a sit toilet, and toilet paper is rarely provided.[1] The typical charge to use a public toilet is Z$50 US Cents, though some in bus stations may be free while others may cost up to USD$1.00.[1][3]
In majority white ruled parts of the country in the late 1970s, public toilets were often available and well maintained as a means of reinforcing racial segregation. These facilities were also something demanded by local white expatriates. This contrasted with public toilet services for other people, which were largely non-existent.[4]
History
editThe Cowdray Park District's sanitation systems in Bulawayo were rehabilitated in the early 2020s as a result of financing from the African Development Bank. Part of this work also included the planned construction of 44 public toilets, with ones being designated for men, women and people with disabilities.[5]
On World Toilet Day 2021, the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) made a public declaration aimed at the Zimbabwe government around the lack of access by the whole population to public toilets and adequate sanitation.[6]
The Zimbabwean government made a mode in May 2021 to try to move away from pit latrines towards water efficient flush toilets. The purpose in doing so was to try to reduce the spread of tropical diseases. The government announced plans to begin building these toilets in schools and healthcare centers in urban and peri-urban areas.[7]
The Harare City Council privatized one of the nine the public toilets at the Mbare Bus Terminus in late 2021, charging travelers, vendors and bus terminal employees around USD$1 each time they needed to use the toilet. There were no exceptions granted for the elderly, those with disabilities and other people who are sometimes granted concessions. The toilets that were privatized had had their facilities improved by donors, with an expectation that they would remain freely accessible to the public.[3]
Open defecation and sanitation
editProgress began to be made in general waste management in the 1990s.[8] In the early 2010s, a large percentage of the population of Chinhoyi lacked adequate sanitation.[9] Around 24.9% of the people in the country practiced open defecation in 2017.[7] The open defecation rate in the Matabeleland North and Manicaland provinces dropped by two percent between 2019 and 2020.[7]
Regional and global situation impacting public toilets in Zimbabwe
editAround 2.5 billion people around the world in 2018 did not have access to adequate toilet facilities. Around 4.5 billion people lacked access to proper sanitation.[10] 344 million children in sub-Saharan Africa did not have a toilet in their home in 2018. The lack of toilet access put these children at risk of water borne diseases.[10] Public toilet access around the world is most acute in the Global South, with around 3.6 billion people, 40% of the world's total population, lacking access to any toilet facilities. 2.3 people in the the Global South do not have toilet facilities in their residence. Despite the fact that the United Nation made a declaration in 2010 that clean water and sanitation is a human right, little has been done in many places towards addressing this on a wider level.[11] Across Africa, open defecation had social consequences. These included loss of dignity and privacy. It also put women at risk of sexual violence.[12]
An issue in developing countries is toilet access in schools. Only 46% of schools in developing countries have them.[13] Many schools around the world in 2018 did not have toilets, with the problem particularly acute in parts of Africa and Asia. Only one in five primary schools on earth had a toilet and only one in eight secondary schools had public toilets.[10] In developing countries, girls are less likely to attend school once they hit puberty if their school does not have adequate hygiene facilities.[14]
Flush toilets are often only found in affluent areas of developing countries.[15]
References
edit- ^ a b c "Public Toilet Charges around the World - Toilet Types & Local Names". QS Supplies. Retrieved 2022-10-21.
- ^ QS Supplies (11 October 2021). "Which Cities Have The Most and Fewest Public Toilets?". QS Supplies. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
- ^ a b Dondo, Loren (2022-01-03). "Mbare Toilets outcry; public forced to pay US1 to use mbare public toilets". Power FM. Retrieved 2022-11-01.
- ^ Affairs, United States Department of State Bureau of African (1979). AF Press Clips.
- ^ Takouleu, Jean Marie (2020-03-02). "ZIMBABWE: Bulawayo water and sanitation project to be completed by end 2020". Afrik 21. Retrieved 2022-11-01.
- ^ "Lack of public toilets an issue of concern for citizens in Zimbabwe". PAN AFRICAN VISIONS. 2021-11-20. Retrieved 2022-11-01.
- ^ a b c Magoum, Inès (2021-05-07). "ZIMBABWE: Eaziflush technology to limit open defecation". Afrik 21. Retrieved 2022-11-01.
- ^ Fobil, JN; Hogarh, JN (2009-09-04). "The dilemmas of plastic wastes in a developing economy: Proposals for a sustainable management approach for Ghana". West African Journal of Applied Ecology. 10 (1). doi:10.4314/wajae.v10i1.45716. ISSN 0855-4307.
- ^ Satterthwaite, David; Mitlin, Diana; Bartlett, Sheridan (April 2015). "Is it possible to reach low-income urban dwellers with good-quality sanitation?". Environment and Urbanization. 27 (1): 3–18. doi:10.1177/0956247815576286. ISSN 0956-2478.
- ^ a b c Associated Press (19 November 2018). "World Toilet Day Highlights Global Sanitation Crisis". VOA. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
- ^ Glassman, Stephanie; Firestone, Julia (May 2022). "Restroom Deserts: Where to go when you need to go" (PDF). AARP.
- ^ Reuters (2016-11-18). "Pakistan among 10 worst countries for access to toilets". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2022-10-11.
{{cite web}}:|last=has generic name (help) - ^ Fleischner, Nicki (21 November 2015). "Toilets by the numbers". Global Citizen. Retrieved 2022-10-10.
- ^ Drewko, Aleksandra (September 2007). Resource-Oriented Public Toilets in Oriented Public Toilets in Developing Countries: Ideas, Design, Operation and Maintenance for Arba Minch, Ethiopia. Hamburg: Hamburg University of Technology.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: year (link) - ^ Drewko, Aleksandra (September 2007). Resource-Oriented Public Toilets in Oriented Public Toilets in Developing Countries: Ideas, Design, Operation and Maintenance for Arba Minch, Ethiopia. Hamburg: Hamburg University of Technology.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: year (link)