How fishing villages in Madagascar are leading a toilet revolution

Posters at Saint-Augustin's Basic Health Centre warn of the health risks of open defecation and promote toilet construction.

In Madagascar, only one in three people has access to proper toilets. But in the country's southern fishing villages, a quiet revolution is taking place as communities swap riverbanks for latrines – tackling deep-rooted habits and health risks tied to poor sanitation.

In the coastal commune of Saint-Augustin, dozens of makeshift toilet blocks have sprung up near family homes, marking a significant shift in local practices. One such structure, shared between three households, serves 17 people.

"After using them, we must throw ashes in the hole to avoid odours. And when that's done, we close it with the lid," said Linah, a local mother, demonstrating the new routine.

For her, this change means no more 15-minute walks to the river mouth.

"We people here have always defecated in the open. It's cultural. But they explained to us that it causes diseases when we do that. So two months ago, we decided to change. We pooled our money together. Who built this? We did!" she said.

This enthusiasm signals a fresh approach to tackling Madagascar's sanitation crisis.

The latest demographic and health survey, conducted in 2021, shows that just one-third of Madagascar's population has access to basic sanitation facilities – but communities are increasingly taking matters into their own hands.

Rather than providing ready-made solutions, a Unicef-funded programme launched in 2022 has put communities in charge of building their own facilities.

Building ownership

In villages such as Saint-Augustin, where new wooden structures now dot the landscape, change is quite literally taking shape from the ground up.



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