Phase 2 of the SaniShop project involves the World Toilet Organisation (WTO) planting entrepreneurial hubs in India with the capability to provide sanitation hardware and services to the poor. It is hoped that through proper training and education, usage of sanitation will become more entrenched in the community. Traditional donor models have seen donated toilets abandoned due to the ignorance on the importance of hygiene and the lack of maintenance.
Having completed Phase 1 of the Arup – WTO partnership, in which Arup Singapore’s Water engineering team provided technical advice for SaniShop India, Arup Singapore was awarded funding to continue with Phase 2 of the SaniShop Project and subsequently expanding the SaniShop model into Vietnam and Nigeria.
SaniShop is WTO’s social franchise model whereby local entrepreneurs and businesses are equipped to promote and sell sanitation solutions to establish a local sanitation marketplace. This helps to drive down the cost of toilets whilst creating demand for them and improving community health and prosperity in the process.
In September this year, Daniel Lambert and Nikki Shaw accompanied WTO and their country partners, Unilever, on a visit to the Mekong Delta in Vietnam – the next target area for the SaniShop rollout. The Mekong Delta has poor sanitation coverage and a high incidence of water and sanitation related illnesses. The area provides additional challenges as it is fairly waterlogged and floods annually. Following this visit, we have compiled a report and technical drawings containing our evaluation of the current situation, our assessment of WTO’s proposed toilet solutions, and recommendations for toilet construction and installation to minimise potential risks and maximise health benefits.
Benefits for Staff and the Community
This project has given the local community and partners involved a catalyst to take sanitation seriously. Partners of the project see the possibilities of bettering their community’s way of life, while also being able work in a wholesome job that meets their needs. This method of sanitation provision offers many benefits that the donor model does not.
Getting involved with Sanishop has allowed Arup’s project staff to gain an awareness of the scale of issues surrounding sanitation in developing countries. It has also given Arup a better understanding of implementing sustainable technologies in a developing country. With sustainable development of emerging economies high on the priorities list of the Australasian regional vision, projects such as these put us in good stead to meet our company’s objectives of the future.
