Today, the 19th of November 2024, the international community comes together in the pursuit of a critical yet often overlooked agenda: sanitation. The United Nation's annual World Toilet Day seeks to ignite discourse and incite positive change around the global sanitation crisis, and this year is no exception.
Established under the auspices of the United Nations General Assembly in 2013, World Toilet Day has become a crucial platform for advocating for proper sanitation facilities for everyone worldwide. However, despite its seemingly humorous title, its significance cannot be underestimated.
A great number of our fellow global citizens – shockingly, about 2 billion people according to a recent United Nations report – still lack basic sanitation facilities. Moreover, more than half a billion individuals are forced to defecate in the open due to the lack of private toilets, exposing them to a myriad of health risks and often violating their dignity and safety, particularly for women and girls.
This year, the theme for World Toilet Day is "Sanitation and Public Health: Ensuring a Cleaner Future." The 2024 chorus is aimed at emphasizing the causal link between inadequate sanitation and severe health issues, including cholera, diarrhoea, dysentery, hepatitis A, typhoid and polio.
The absence of proper sanitation facilities also pertains closely to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly Goal 6: ensuring clean water and sanitation for all. Regrettably, if the status quo persists, we may not realize these goals by the stipulated 2030 deadline.
World Toilet Day, however, is not just about elucidating the problems but is equally about galvanizing action and solutions. Numerous organizations, individuals, and governments are doing their part to change the narrative. By embracing innovative sanitation solutions like the bidirectional flush, eco-friendly composting toilets, solar-powered sanitation facilities, and more, we aspire to lessen the sanitation disparity.
We commemorate today by spreading awareness about the stark reality of sanitation crisis around the globe. Let's discuss these issues openly and honestly, and shake off any embarrassment or taboo surrounding the conversation about toilets.
But acknowledgment alone is not enough. The urgency of the situation calls for tangible actions. Every one of us has a role to play. Advocacy for better sanitation infrastructures, pushing our respective governments for relevant policies, or even supporting global and local non-profit organizations working towards this cause; every step counts.
The COVID-19 pandemic emphasized the importance of sanitation and hygiene more than ever. As we are slowly but steadily navigating towards the post-pandemic world in 2024, it is crucial to ensure that sanitation remains high on the global agenda.
So, on this World Toilet Day 2024, let us pledge to intensify our efforts to tackle this global sanitation crisis head-on. Let's campaign for the right to sanitation for every human being. Let's strive for a world where no one is left behind in the realm of sanitation and access to toilets. Only then can we ensure a clean, healthy, and dignified future for all. Together, we have the power to turn the tide.
