JUDGE LEADERS BY THE NUMBER OF TOILETS IN THEIR BACKYARDS

The other day I received a message from an unknown source - probably one of the many readers of my articles - lamenting about the state of our public health. He pointed out lack of practical linkages between human waste production and disposal and the apparent absence of official recognition that a significant number of Kenyans do defecate 'openly'.

His view was anchored on recent government statistics and the fact that open defecation is no more a secret but the 'only way' for many of our folks living at the socio-economic periphery of this country. 

This, definitely, is a pointer to many factors. The measure of a country's progress is inseparable from the (primary) health standards of its people and the quality of ideas flowing from its leadership.

The awkward reality - and perhaps one that leaders must know - is that sanitation is the core of all our socio-econo-political experiments. For no population lives in isolation. We are inherently predisposed to risks and/or positives of others. The Ebola epidemic in West Africa is one perfect example. 

Ebola - albeit all groaning and cries flying from its victims - has brought to the fore a new positive thinking. That no frontiers exist on matters of public health. That the mighty and the weak, the rich and the poor, the schooled and the unschooled, the urbanites and the rural folks, are equally predisposed to public health risks. That an all-inclusive engagement is the way to go to stay healthy.

Which brings us to the core of our discussion: Is our public health preparedness commensurate to the dangers lurking ahead of us? Put it differently; are we ready to judge our leaders by the number of toilets in their backyards?

This is what the Kenyan government numbers say. Thirty-nine percent of Kenyans have no access to improved methods of waste disposal. Most of these victims, live in what is generally classified as rural areas - those pockets of our nation that feature prominently on the wrong side of Kenyan intelligentsia. (check:  http://www.sidint.net/content/inequalities-kenya)

In my home county, Turkana, 91% of residents use unimproved sanitation. In this place, valleys, bushes and rocky grounds not only serve as those must-reach beautiful selfie-spots, but the only place to dispose of human waste.

Look, out of the thirty wards in the county, practically twenty of them have no improved sanitation facilities (read toilets). This is sixty percent of the county going to the bushes! 

No wonder under-four mortality rate in the county is always on the upward trajectory as we keep on blaming mosquitoes and hunger. The problem is poor sanitation. This is what is killing my people.

Mark you; this is not about toilets and defecation alone. It is the whole sanitation thing. And according to them (these government people); sanitation refers to the principles and practices relating to the collection, removal, or disposal of human excreta, household waste, water and refuse as they impact upon people and the environment.

Decent sanitation is grounded in appropriate hygiene awareness and behaviour as well as acceptable, affordable and sustainable sanitation services which is crucial for the health and the wellbeing of the people.

Some observations are clear even for the numskull. Poor or inexistent human waste disposal facilities leads to higher human and economic costs to communities through pollution of rivers, ground water and higher incidence of air and water borne diseases. Needless to talk of the blows education will suffer from this.

On the other hand, women and girls shoulder the greatest challenges of open defecation. Bush defecation puts them right into the hands of rapists and other sex pests roaming around in the vicinity.

The Indian "rape-hunter" experience proves this right. In rural parts of India, many women have been sexually abused and even died as a result of attacks from these sex-hunters.

From the look of things, Kenya should not afford hurtling down this deadly path. We have the capacity – material or otherwise – to make things work. However, it is instructive that the rethinking of our strategies takes into consideration the many dynamics out there.

There is an ingrained pseudo-cultural understanding among our people that things like toilets, are for the cream in the society. For them, this is a show of progress that the poor cannot afford. Tellingly, this is purely a problem of the mind that can only be vanquished by consistent public awareness and follow-ups.

Again, building a toilet falls at the bottom of the priority list of many economically disadvantaged Kenyans. For many of these folks, building a toilet means foregoing most of the badly needed items atop the family index. It is for this reason that government-led sanitation projects come in handy down there.

At a time when youth unemployment is the in-thing across public and private corridors in this country, perhaps, it strikes some sense to shift our focus and energies to sustainable toilets. 

County governments stand a better chance in actualizing this. What they need is simple: train youth, support them financially and have them deal with toilet construction, maintenance and management.

From a radical standpoint, Parliament and County Assemblies can do Kenyans a great service by passing laws stipulating that government officials – and especially, those residing at the countryside – (should) build at least one toilet as a mark of their commitment to sanitation.

Come 2017, before you troop to your polling station, count the number of sanitation facilities (toilets, refuse disposal points etc) in your village, constituency and county to gauge the commitment of leaders in the development of this country.

We must think, speak and act sanitation to propel this nation’s socio-econo-political wheel!

Lemukol Ng’asike is an Architect. E-mail: lemoseh89@gmail.com . Twitter: @mlemukol.