World Toilet Day, 2020

Sustainable Sanitation and Climate Change

Co-hosted by the Missions of India, Nigeria and Singapore to the UN supported by WHO, UNICEF and UN-Water

Remarks by

Ambassador Nagaraj Naidu

Deputy Permanent Representative

19 November 2020

H.E. President of General Assembly,

H.E. Ambassador Burhan Gafoor, PR of Singapore,

Excellencies, Distinguished guests

We are pleased to join Permanent Missions of Singapore and Nigeria to the United Nations in New York in convening this important discussion on the occasion of World Toilet Day. 

We would also like to thank WHO, UNICEF and UN-Water for their support and for presenting the first “State of World’s Sanitation” report. 

Excellencies,

This year the theme is “Sustainable Sanitation and Climate Change”. 

Availability of freshwater is unequally distributed geographically in space and time, such that an estimated four billion people experience ‘severe water scarcity’ for the duration of at least one month every year, causing difficulties for handwashing and sanitation. 

Challenges with availability of water are projected to become more widespread and acute due to climate change as well as changed water demand due to population growth, displacement, intensification of agriculture and infrastructure degradation.

In other words, water insecurity is likely to become more prevalent having consequences for the mental, physical, nutritional and socioeconomic well-being of billions. 

Never has the urgency of the call for action on SDG 6, been so evident and meaningful to so many people than during COVID times. 

While it’s easy to say that handwashing is a simple and primary preventive measure against COVID, not many realize that a single 20-second hand wash rinsing uses at least two liters of water, a luxury in the vast majority of the developing world. A family of four washing 10 times a day each would end up using 80 liters just for handwashing.

While the developed world was struggling to get hold of more toilet paper at the peak of COVID, individuals and families in the developing world were confronted with the challenging decision about how best to use the limited resources they had - such as deciding between purchasing water or purchasing food, irrigating crops or watering animals, or, as the COVID-19 pandemic highlights, to consume water or use it for handwashing. Additionally, the time spent in fetching water presents multiple opportunity costs, including limited time for income-generating activities, missing school, particularly for the girl child and potentially reduced purchasing power for sanitation products.

Excellencies, 

Sustainable sanitation essentially begins with a toilet that effectively captures waste in a safe, accessible, and dignified setting. The Romans not only built a strong empire, but also excelled at building toilets, though in the beginning without much social distancing. 

Over the last six years, India has undertaken a herculean task to improve sanitation facilities across the country. We have successfully implemented the world’s largest behavioral change campaign with the Clean India Mission, building over 111 million toilets or roughly over 50,000 toilets per day. 

India’s experience with the Clean India Mission has offered us a few lessons: 

• Need to make sanitation a people’s movement. 
• Institutional arrangements need to be in place with heavy emphasis on education, training, participation and maintenance. 
• The role of women in management of water and sanitation facilities and monitoring are crucial to ensure sustainability of achievements in this area.
• Use of technology as an enabler in providing sustainable sanitation solutions.

Excellencies, 

Globally, around 80% of the wastewater generated by society flows back into the ecosystem without being treated or reused. This wastewater and sludge from toilets contain valuable water, nutrients, and energy, all of which can be channelled elsewhere to serve a better cause.

The conventional design of toilets in rural India is based on the premise that waste should not be disposed, but through proper recycling, and waste management can be turned into a valuable resource. 

We are now is phase 2 of Clean India Mission where we are focusing on continued usage of facilities created, greater hygiene awareness, providing sufficient water connections for sanitation systems and ensuring treatment, and recycling of waste. 

Phase 2 will also address the bigger question of waste treatment in cities, including mandatory garbage segregation, removal of landfill sites and composting. We have simultaneously also launched a new $50 billion initiative to provide piped water supply to 146 million households - by 2024. 

Excellencies,

As we consider what must be done to make the SDG 2030 Agenda a reality and better prepare societies for future global health crises, we encourage policymakers and programme implementers to prioritize WASH and consider holistic solutions that address the three facets of water insecurity - water availability, water quality and water accessibility.

Sanitation is a prime example of the need for a broader view of adaptation that considers the complexity of ensuring equitable access to essential services for the poorest communities while adapting to a range of climate change risks. 

Finally, the economic benefits of investing in water and sanitation are considerable: a US$ 4.3 return for every dollar invested in water and sanitation services, due to reduced health care costs for individuals and society, and greater productivity and involvement in the workplace through better access to facilities.

I thank everyone for their attention. 

We look forward to hear from other speakers.