Tackling Toilet Loss

TacklingToiletLoss Thehiddeneconomicandsocietalcostofneglectingschooltoilets Supportedby Contents 3Foreword 4Aboutthereport 6Executivesummary 16Unpackingthewhat,whyandhow 27ThecurrentstateofToiletLoss 35Apathwaytofullsanitationcoverageinschools 52Conclusion 58Appendix:Countrydatasummary Foreword Manypeoplearefortunateenoughnottogivethehumbletoiletmuchthought.Butnexttimeyousitonafully-functioning,cleantoilet,justtakeamomenttothinkaboutthemillionsofschoolchildrenaroundtheworldwhogotoschoolwithoutone. Thefirsttoiletwasbuiltinaround3000BCE,andthefirstflushingtoiletin1596.Butwhatisoneofhumanity’smostimportantinventionsiseasily—andrightly—takenforgranted.Theuncomfortabletruth,however,isthatoneinthree,or539million,schoolchildrendonothaveatoiletinschoolthatisfitforuse.Theycan’ttakethetoiletforgranted.Thatthisishappeningin2023—ayearofmissionstothesun,touristsflyingintospaceandAIgoingmainstream—makesitevenmoreshocking.Thishastochange. Withoutup-to-date,relevantdata,wemakedecisionsinthedarkandriskdoingthesamethingswhileexpectingdifferentoutcomes.Weneedclear,actionable,newdatatosolveoldproblems.Thisiswhywe’vecommissionedtheToiletLossreporttohelpusunderstandwhytheSDG6.2targetofuniversalaccesstoadequateandequitablesanitationhasstayedresolutelyoutofreach—agapinaccessthatneverclosesdespitetheHerculeaneffortsinbuildingtoiletsoverthepastdecade. Whathasemergedfromthereportissimplebehaviouraleconomics,specificallytheeconomicsoflossaversion.Lossisfeltmorekeenlythanagain.Andtheproblemisn’tthatwe’rebuildingtoiletstooslowly,it’sthatwe’relosingtoiletstoofrequently.Thetoiletsexistbut,withoutaplantomaintainthem,theyfallintodisrepairandbecomeunusable—liketheyneverexisted. ThisreportquantifiesthescaleandcostofToiletLoss,startingwithschools,wheretheimpactoflosttoiletsmeansthatanurgentchangeisrequired.ToiletLossisholdingbackagenerationof schoolchildrenwhoseeducationhasalreadybeenunjustlyimpededbytheglobalpandemic.Thisreportshowsthevalueofinvestinginschooltoilets,andtheeconomicimpactofimprovedlearningoutcomesalongsidemoreprosperouseconomies.MorethanUS$1.9billionislostacrossfourcountriesalonebecausetoiletsarebuiltwithoutaplantomaintainthem.Ifwewanttoachieveuniversalaccessby2030,thesolutionisnotsimplytobuildmoretoilets—themostcost-effectivestrategyistodirectinvestmentfirsttowardsmaintainingexistingtoilets. Thehumbletoiletissomethingworthprotecting.Avaluethat’sunderstoodasuniversallyasgold.OurUnileverbrand,Domestos,istheworld’sleadingtoiletcleaningbrandandbelievesexactlythat. Todate,Domestoshashelped29millionpeoplegetaccesstoaclean,safetoiletthroughits10-yearpartnershipwithUNICEFanditsschooltoiletoperationandmaintenanceprogramme,‘CleanerToiletsBrighterFutures’. Togetherwithitspartners,includingUNICEFandGIZ,Domestosiscommittedtohelping100millionpeoplegetimprovedaccesstosanitationby2030. Thisisnotafightwecanwinalone.Manyexpertsfromthepublicandprivatesectorhavecontributedtothisreportandtheirvoicesareheardinit.Sojustaswecametogethertodevelopit,wemustcometogethertoactonit. Ourhopeisthatthisreportshinesalightontheoverlookedandundervaluedissueoftheoperationandmaintenanceofschooltoilets;ignitesnewdiscussionsanddecisionstoinformpolicymakingandfunding;andfreesallschoolsandpupilstohavetheirneedsmetsotheycanfocusonwhatmatters:theireducation.ToiletLossisanunnecessarydragonoureducationsystems,andonlybyknowingit’shappening—havingthedatatoshowit—canweworktogethertostopit.Ifwegetitright,everychildborntodaywillhaveaccesstoaclean,safetoiletbythetimetheystartschool.AndIsincerelyhopeeachofthemtakesitforgranted. EduardoCampanella,ChiefMarketingOfficer,HomeCare,Unilever Aboutthereport Thisreport,supportedbyUnilever,presentsfindingsfromresearchconductedbyEconomistImpacttoassessthecostsoffailingtoprovideallchildrenwithaccesstoclean,safeandusabletoiletsintheirschoolsandtoidentifythemosteffectiveinvestmentpathwaytoclosethegap.Thefindingsare basedoninsightsgatheredfromaliteraturereview,expertinterviewsandacustomeconomicimpactmodeldevelopedbyEconomistImpact.EconomistImpactbearssoleresponsibilityforthecontent ofthisreport.Thefindingsandviewsexpresseddonotnecessarilyreflecttheviewsofthesponsor.Thisreportwasproducedbyateamofresearchers,writersandeditorsincluding: •KatherineStewart—seniorprojectadvisor •ShivangiJain—projectdirector •DinaAlborno—projectmanager •DeniPortl—leadanalyst ThereportwasdesignedbyMarinadaSilva. Ourthanksareduetothefollowingpeoplefortheirtimeandinvaluableinsightsthroughinterviewsandconsultationsthroughouttheprogramme(listedalphabeticallybysurname).Supportprovidedtotheprogramme’sdevelopmentdoesnotimplyendorsement(inpartorinfull)oftheresearchapproachorfindings. •BrianArbogast,directorofWater,SanitationandHygieneProgram,Bill&MelindaGatesFoundation •HabibBenzian,researchprofessor,WHOCollaboratingCenter,NewYorkUniversity;globalhealthresearchfellow,InstituteofAdvancedStudyatStellenboschUniversity •SophieBoisson,sanitationandWASHepidemiologist,WorldHealthOrganisation(WHO) •ClaireChase,senioreconomist,WorldBank •ChristieChatterley,FortLewisCollege;independ