India is a country of 1.3 billion and yet only about half the people have access to a toilet, and nearly 600 million defecate in the open. Unilever’s Domestos Toilet Academy is working on the ground in Bihar state, with PSI and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, to help families own a toilet.
By training local people to be masons, and by engaging with microfinance providers and local suppliers, the initiative is helping to make building a toilet easier and more affordable.
The programme also provides education about the health and safety benefits of toilets, and encourages people to change their habits from going outside to using a household toilet, thereby creating demand for sanitation.
