Three Heroes in the Fight for Hygiene

It may not be the nicest thing to think about, but human waste is serious business.

Here in the United States, you can simply flush the toilet and need never give a second thought to your number twos. But in many developing countries, it’s nowhere near so easy to keep things clean: many impoverished communities have no toilets or sewage treatment at all, or the toilets are so filthy that people refuse to use them. Instead, people must defecate in the dirt, or in lakes or rivers. The waste then seeps into the community’s drinking water, and is one of the leading causes of deadly diseases like cholera and typhoid. Raise money for this problem and other problems.

Fortunately, several social entrepreneurs from Africa are using innovative strategies to ensure that community members have access to clean, sanitary sewage facilities. Here’s how they’re cleaning up their communities by helping people clean up after themselves.

In Kenyan megaslum, Kibera, a businessman named David Kuria has turned community bathrooms into destinations with a venture called Ecotact. “Why just do two quick things in the toilet?” he questions.

Well, mostly, because it doesn’t smell so good in there. But Kuria hopes that, by converting bathroom facilities into “toilet malls,” complete with food stalls, shoe shines, phone booths, and more, he might be able to change people’s opinions of bathrooms. This way, the vendors are driven to keep the toilet stalls sparkling clean to keep their business coming, and advertisers pay to promote their goods to the 30,000 customers who use the Ecotact toilets every day. These toilet malls are so trendy, in fact, that Kenya’s own Vice President recently stopped by to try out the facilities and pose for a photo (though not at the same time, we hope). Kuria now hopes to take his toilet mall model nationwide, helping to bring hygiene and commerce to a country where 60 percent of people don’t have access to bathroom facilities.

Another entrepreneur, Dr. Joseph Adelegan of Nigeria, found a unique use for the animal waste produced in a nearby slaughterhouse. Previously, the slaughterhouse had simply dumped the waste into the local river, causing the risk of infectious diseases to people in the nearby town. Dr. Adelegan, a civil engineer, created a bioreactor that converts the waste into biogas, which then generates electricity that can be used for cooking fuel. The fuel is then sold by local women’s groups as an affordable fuel for the poor, and the remaining waste is sold as cheap fertilizer. Dr. Adelegan’s system doesn’t just clean up waste—by reducing methane gas emissions, it’s extremely eco-friendly as well. His model has recently been accepted as national policy, and will soon be replicated in other slaughterhouses throughout Nigeria.

A third hygiene-focused entrepreneur, Trevor Mulaudzi , has created a business in his native South Africa dedicated to providing sanitation services to schools, businesses, and other organizations. His business, The Clean Shop, provides toilet cleaning and plumbing services, and offers students lessons in proper hygiene. Since its founding 13 years ago, Mulaudzi’s small business has grown into a large enterprise employing more than 350 people, and providing help to thousands throughout the country.

While sewage may be a dirty business, someone’s got to deal with it—and these three entrepreneurs seem to have the knack to clean up their countries, one toilet at a time.

How you can help : If you want to join these heroes on their mission of promoting proper hygiene in the developing world, there are many organizations that can help you do it. A group called WaterAid America has made it their mission to ensure that everyone has access to safe and clean drinking water and sanitation facilities, and has already helped more than 11 million people in Africa gain access to safe water. A donation to them will help bring sanitation and clean water to the people who need it most.