Given these significant challenges, UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia (ROSA), CLTS Foundation Global, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) and Regional Sanitation Centre (RSC) for South Asia are combining efforts to strengthen the sanitation sector and enhance institutional capacities across the region, SanLearn 2022 is a step towards that. A sanitation learning event in Sri Lanka in November 2022 is being organizing bringing together key stakeholders working on sanitation issues in the region.

The learning event will be supported and facilitated by UNICEF, CLTS Foundation Global and RSC, wherein internationally recognized sanitation experts will be invited. SanLearn 2022 intends to bring together senior government officials, key decision-makers and technical staff from different countries to engage in discussion and seek common solutions to eliminate open defecation and scale up access to safely managed sanitation.

The post SanLearn 2022! appeared first on CLTS Foundation Global.

The post Dr. Kamal Kar had given a talk at the TEDx event appeared first on CLTS Foundation Global.

Rural Cambodia’s access to basic sanitation was 42.6% in 2015 according to JMP: WHO/UNICEF. The practice of OD was very high in rural areas with high incidences of diarrhoea, malnutrition and stunting. The rate of stunting in Cambodia is one of the highest in the region next to TimurLestewhich has the third-highest stunting rate in the world. 54% of children under the age of five are stunted and 25% are wasted(who.org). The practise of OD in rural Cambodia is still very high although ODF Communes and Districts have started emerging in the country. Kep is the first province to have a couple of ODF districts while the number of Open Defecation Free (ODF)  communes in the country are many.

The post National Sanitation day and CLTS in Cambodia appeared first on CLTS Foundation Global.

The post Safaigiri Award Winner 2019 appeared first on CLTS Foundation Global.

The event was inaugurated and hosted by Mr. Sisir Pradhan, who is currently a Ph.D candidate at the School of Environment, Enterprise and Development, University of Waterloo. Pradhan has worked with Kar for several years and highlighted various instances of their work together and the emergence and importance of CLTS moving forward.

Following that, Dalbir Singh, Sarpanch of Bilaspur Village from Panipat, one of the natural leaders from Haryana
elucidated his experience with CLTS, how the state of sanitation had undergone a change in his community, and how the community benefitted from CLTS. He also stated proudly that his community was now open defecation free (ODF). The author of the book, Dr. Kamal Kar then took the stage and elaborated upon the history and development of the CLTS movement and how the approach came to be adopted by various governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and international agencies, citing the successful transformation in Bangladesh to an ODF country using the CLTS approach.

Kar added some anecdotes from his experiences in Asia, Africa and Latin America on the strength of collective action to end open defecation. He also briefly outlined the important CLTS case studies which have been enumerated from around the world, as well as the need, obstacles and potential to scale-up the approach, taking the journey ‘From Village to Nation’.

Following the official launch, a panel discussion was held. The panel was moderated by Dr. Kar and the speakers included Mr. V.K. Madhavan of WaterAid India, Ms. Meena Narula of Water for People, and Mr. Jamie Myers of the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex. As the theme of the event was ‘Behaviour Change and Human Dignity’, panellists elaborated upon a wealth of topics including gender impacts, subsidies for sanitation hardware, access to latrines, the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (SBA), and the ways forward for the CLTS movement.

While Madhavan applauded the national importance given to the SBA as a movement against open defecation, he stated that the program and the CLTS approach must be retrofitted to address the emerging challenges of inclusion, sanitation demands and post ODF sustainability in this journey towards total hygiene. He said “the CLTS approach is not only an effort to help people build toilets and use them. It is meant to help people transform towards hygiene behaviour”, thereby drawing attention to the next phase of WASH concerns.

Similarly, Kar praised the SBA but also stated that sanitation has turned from a people’s movement to the
government’s movement requiring more participation for sustainability. While Myers shared his experiences
from India and Africa to highlight the idea and impact of gender specific sanitation interventions, Narula
expanded on the need for an intermingling of local culture and practices towards bringing forth sustained
behaviour change for human dignity.

Members of the audience then posed a number of questions to the panellists, which focused on issues related to modifying CLTS in the future, CLTS solutions for women’s dignity and gender parity, institutional triggering, political factors, efficacy of subsidies, and others. The panellists shared their thoughts on making this a holistic movement with special focus on these emerging concerns.

After the panel discussion, Pradhan expanded upon the book, citing its various sections, case studies and
findings. He also described its various uses for the future of the CLTS program development and
implementation, as well as notable anecdotes from its writing and publishing. Mahesh Kumar, Sarpanch of
Basara from Haryana then took the podium to illustrate his experience with scaling up CLTS. He stated that
the momentum of the CLTS approach in Haryana was established because his village was involved in
helping neighbouring villages become ODF after becoming ODF itself. He emphasized that this strategy is
an effective way to build support and traction for CLTS.

The event was concluded with the closing address by Ms. Urvashi Asthana from Practical Action, India. She
thanked the various organizations, media and community members for attending the event and making their
presence felt. She also stated that this book marked the beginning of a new phase for CLTS.

About the Book

The book has been written by Dr. Kamal Kar, and is an extensive account of how the CLTS movement came about, got adopted/institutionalized by governments and other agencies, and spread across the world. It includes methodologies for influencing the sanitation policies at the national level as well as ‘triggering’ villages/regions/districts to initiate and sustain collective local action against open defecation. A major publication after more than a decade since the Handbook on CLTS was published in 2008, the book also encapsulates case studies from across the world with special emphasis on scaling up and institutionalization of the CLTS approach.

The book is available for purchase online at:-

1. https://developmentbookshop.com/scaling-up-community-led-total-sanitation?fbclid=IwAR3brsAlCqgxGAqrzVvOYuGqs6fgO5ueqsc75ahl0vCnQHLhUXZMd8rUvzc
2. https://www.amazon.in/Scaling-up-Community-Led-Total-Sanitation-village-ebook/dp/B07NNRYBQ3/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=scaling+up+CLTS&qid=1557120725&s=gateway&sr=8-1-spell

The post Book Launch | Scaling-Up CLTS From Village to Nation | 29th April 2019 appeared first on CLTS Foundation Global.

CLTS Foundation Global with UNICEF Myanmar and other WASH partners

On 9^th January 2019, CLTS Foundation Global and UNICEF Myanmar initiated a discussion at the UNICEF Country Office in Bahan Yangon. The focus of the discussion was to review the progress in sanitation made by the nation so far and to look forward towards planning for scaling up of Open Defecation Free (ODF) initiatives in a meaningful partnership. The proposed agenda of the discussion was:-

1. Regional and global updates on CLTS initiatives focusing SDG 6.2 by Dr Kamal Kar
2. Brief updates on current ODF initiatives in Myanmar by WASH partners
3. Question/Answer/Discussion

The Sustainable Development Goal 6 is to ensure availability and sustainable management of water & sanitation for all. Target 6.2 within the goal specifies that by 2030, the world must achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations. This will be monitored by Indicator 6.2.1 which is the proportion of the population using safely managed sanitation services, including a hand-washing facility with soap and water.

Globally, there are 2.3 million people who still lack access to basic and safe sanitation services. According to the JMP Report, 2015, South East Asia accounts for 8.27% of people having access to basic sanitation; East and South-Eastern Asia accounts for 2.66% and Central and Southern Asia account for 33.25%. It is surprising to note that while most of the countries of South East Asia (For e.g. Cambodia, Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam) showed an improvement in the access to basic sanitation services from the year 2000 to the year 2015, Myanmar showed a decrease from 70% to 65% despite its efforts. The percentage is stunting among infants stands at 35%. The under-five mortality rate is 50 per 1000 live births and diarrhoea incidence is 61%.

What are the reasons for the decline and lack of sustainability in Myanmar?

Myanmar has the existence of CLTS guidelines in the local language but without adaptability. While the off criterion is being established, the current standards seem quite high considering the sanitation market’s underdevelopment with either limited access to markets by the rural population, very few affordable sanitation options, or both.

There is a lack of an enabling environment including the existence of a formal well circulated proper policy/strategy. Triggering and integration with other approaches have shown good results, however low triggering quality and post off support without the access and availability of materials for scaling up does not yield good results in the long term.

Sanitation is under the Ministry of Health and since it has been integrated with other approaches, one would assume that the sanitation and health outcomes would be better. However, CLTS process continues to be led by NGOs or other implementers and is not implemented under the government’s leadership leading financial crunch in terms of funding from the government. Coordination with other ministries for CLTS is ad hoc or nonexistent without any formal mechanism.

Myanmar has only shown improvement with regards to implementation which to a large extent the victory of the communities but the support after has not been enough to ensure sustainability. The lack of government commitment and associated budget and human resources is seen as holding back the scaling up of CLTS and taking it beyond the hands of development partners and NGOs into a national approach.  The need for well-trained facilitators, including from governments, with regular refresher training, was noted in Myanmar. Construction of low-quality latrines with pits that flood in high water table areas or collapse in sandy soils resulted in a reversion to open defecation. Village leaders can generate community support for individuals in the form of labour, materials or cash, but this depends on the strength of the local leader.

What does Myanmar need to do to ascend along the sanitation ladder?

• Establish a national level WASH policy/protocol and strategy including all stages of CLTS and across all levels.
• Develop market linkages to provide access to better sanitation materials- Example Lixil (Japanese company providing to African countries in 5-10$ )
• Develop local context related proper training and triggering materials and modules along with quality control mechanisms
• Remove subsidies and mainstream CLTS into the MoH guidelines and strategy
• Establish inter-institutional working groups from all ministries
• Create flexible funding from all the ministries for implementation of innovative ideas
• Include Natural Leaders and Community Consultants along with civil society organisations for scaling up and integration
• Establish proper ODF protocol at the national level including guidelines for continuous monitoring

The post Can Myanmar be the first ODF nation in South East Asia? appeared first on CLTS Foundation Global.

Chairman’s Message

The Foundation also participated in major global events like the World Water Week in Stockholm and the Mahatma Gandhi International Sanitation Conference in New Delhi, India where we connected with major global actors, Ministers and senior officials concerned with the national sanitation programmes of African and Asian nations. This year also marked a decade of the publication of the ‘Handbook on Community- Led Total Sanitation’ which was published by Plan UK and IDS UK in 2008. It has been translated into more than 16 languages and circulated widely. Major portion of the work for our next book titled ‘Scaling up CLTS – From Village to Nation’ was also completed this year and we are excited to announce that the book will be out soon in early 2019.
– Dr Kamal Kar

Highlights of our Work

	Meeting with Cambodia’s Minister of Rural Development on 12th February, 2018 A National level Training of Trainers (ToT) was organized by SNV, Cambodia and CLTS Foundation Global in the Pursat province from the 5th to 9th February 2018. Following the successful training in Pursat, a meeting with the Minister of Rural Development was held on the 12th of February. The meeting was very encouraging and the Minister stated that making Cambodia ODF is one of the major agendas of the Ministry.
	Capacity Strengthening for Community Led Total Sanitation in Mozambique Following a National Sanitation Conference in 2014 and in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, Mozambique aims to become ODF by 2025. In April 2018, CLTS Foundation Global in co-ordination with UNICEF Mozambique and UKAid, worked to strengthen both on-the-ground capacity for scaling up with this target in mind, and the institutional drive to do so.
	Academic Collaboration with IHE Delft Institute for Water Education and IRC WASH Debate We collaborated with IHE Delft Institute for Water Education’s One Year Master of Science programme in Sanitation to develop a sub-module named ‘Community Led Total Sanitation Spotlight” in the Behaviour Change and Advocacy module for the programme.
	CLTS Foundation Global at World Water Week, Stockholm CLTS Foundation Global and Water Supply & Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) organised an informal discussion at World Water Week on how nations can be fast tracked to achieve Open Defecation Free status.
	Community Led Approach to Fuel Efficient Cook Stoves: A joint initiative by CLTS Foundation Global and Vita CLTS Foundation Global joined hands with Vita, an Irish NGO to commit to the cause of contributing to Ethiopia’s strategy to improve efficiency of biomass use which plays a major role in Ethiopia’s vision of becoming a middle-income country with a Climate-Resilient Green Economy (CRGE) by 2025.
	CLTS Foundation Global in National Sanitation Conference 2018, Eritrea CLTS Foundation Global was invited by UNICEF from 30th November 2018 to 12th December 2018 to support Eritrea in scaling up for an ODF Nation by 2022 and for facilitating the First Eritrean National Sanitation Conference.

CLTS Blog

Magic on the sapphire landscape (CLTS in Kiribati) – Ms. Nuzhat Shahzadi “Furthermore, following results of the CLTS training, a total of 90 villages (47 target villages of the “Kiriwatsan I” project) in 11 outer islands declared themselves open-defecation free with the involvement of a total of 30,054 people representing 84% of the target population and 29% of the total population of Kiribati,” writes CLTS champion Nuzhat Shahzadi in this blog.
In conversation: Emily Woods, CTO and Co-Founder, Sanivation Ms Emily Woods is an NSF scholar with a passion for developing innovative and affordable technology solutions. After a chance meeting at the World Water Week this year, we decided to take the conversation forward and learn more about innovations in non-sewered sanitation from Ms Woods herself.
World Toilet Day: How can ‘Reinvented Toilets’ address the global sanitation crisis? While admitting that there has been limited hardware innovations in the sanitation sector, we have to keep in mind that ‘software’ i.e. behaviour change approaches are important for adoption and ownership of toilets. One of the most successful approaches is Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS), which has been rolled out in more than 70 countries worldwide.
Human Rights Day: WASH during Emergencies Armed conflicts, floods, droughts, earthquakes are some of the major causes of emergency situations. People caught in such humanitarian situations are much more vulnerable to diseases, often caused by lack of sanitation, inadequate water supply and deplorable hygiene. Increased risk of disease also arises from overcrowding, exposure to new pathogens and the disruption of routine and safe habits.

CLTS Champions

A bureaucrat’s efforts towards Swacch Bharat by using CLTS as a weapon The District Magistrate of Murshidabad (West Bengal) Dr. P. Ulaganathan, IAS talks about his efforts to create an ODF Murshidabad (West Bengal). With his experience as erstwhile District Magistrate of Cooch Behar (West Bengal); an in-depth knowledge of Community Led Total Sanitation, he has managed to create one success story after another. Here he shares some of his challenges and learnings.

CB 88, Salt Lake, Kolkata – 64 cltsfoundation@gmail.com +91 3340651168

The post CLTS Foundation Global Annual Newsletter 2018 appeared first on CLTS Foundation Global.

Day 1 (30th November 2018): The CLTS Foundation Global team met with officials from UNICEF Eritrea including the Country Representative, the Deputy Country Representative and the WASH team members to discuss and develop a strategy for a successful mission at the Unicef office, UN Compound. The primary aim was to establish was to identify the cause for the low access to sanitation across the country and devise a plan to free up these bottlenecks in order to fast-track sanitation work in the near future. As of October 2018, only 907 amounting to 32% of the rural population have stopped practising open defecation. Therefore, there exists a mammoth size task in front of the stakeholders to accelerate the access to sanitation for all to achieve the SDG target.

However, the focus of this mission would be to draw from the good practices and successful outcomes the CLTS approach has demonstrated across the country to convince the stakeholders at the zoba(zonal) and national level to prioritise sanitation.

The meeting was to fine-tune the strategy for the first Eritrean Sanitation Conference to be held on the 11th and 12th of December this year. This will witness participation of a number of ministers, ambassadors from different countries, partners and departmental/ ministerial officials from the different levels to seek commitments from them to support and coordinate for faster, smoother and better quality implementation of CLTS across the country making Eritrea ODF soon.

Left to Right: David Tsetse (WASH Chief, UNICEF Eritrea), Dr. Kamal Kar (Chairman, CLTS Foundation Global), Dr. Pierre Ngom (Country Representative, UNICEF Eritrea),  Megha Sen (Programme Officer, CLTS Foundation Global), Shaya Asindua (Deputy Country Representative, UNICEF Eritrea), Geoffrey Acaye (CSD Chief, UNICEF Eritrea), Yirgalem Solomon (WASH Specialist, UNICEF Eritrea)

Day 3 (3rd of December): The CLTS Foundation Global team along with members from the UNICEF WASH team had a meeting with Her Excellency Amina Nurhussein, Minister of Health and Dr. Andat Tefatsion, Director General of  Public Health of The State of Eritrea. The discussion revolved around the current access to sanitation which stands at 32% and how the country could achieve better results in the coming years. The Minister was convinced of the power of collective local action and stated that the political willingness and enthusiasm from the community could make the country ODF by 2022. On a highly encouraging note, she also agreed with Dr. Kamal Kar, the Chairman of CLTS Foundation Global that the date of achievement for an ODF Nation could be advanced to 2020, given the right kind of enabling environment and motivation. She believes that the focus of all the ministries and stakeholders should move beyond the sub-national level to free up the blockages and the aim to become the first African country to achieve ODF National status.

Left to right: Megha Sen (Programme Officer, CLTS Foundation Global), Yirgalem Solomon (WASH Specialist, UNICEF Eritrea), H.E. Amina Nurhussein (Minister of Health), Dr. Kamal Kar (Chairman, CLTS Foundation Global), Mr. David Tsetse (WASH Chief, UNICEF Eritrea), Dr Andat Tefatsion (Director General of Public Health)

Day 4 (4th of December): Dr. Kamal Kar and Ms. Megha Sen of the CLTS Foundation Global Team along with Yirgalem Solomon, Wash Specialist  (UNICEF) met with Berhane Habtemariam, the Minister of Finance to seek his presence at the First National Sanitation Conference in Eritrea (Eri-San I) which is to be held on 11th and 12th of December. After an intense discussion on the urgent need for a common platform with the involvement of all institutional actors across all departments and levels to fast track access to sanitation in the country, the Minister agreed that it is crucial to hav e a healthy population to build capacity. He graciously accepted the invitation to the conference and agreed to show his support towards the national movement against open defecation.

Badaraoh village in Maekel Zoba

Day 5 (5th of December): Dr. Kamal Kar and Ms. Megha Sen met with Dr. Zemui and Mr. Abraham Milash Head of Sanitation and Health Unit under the Ministry of Health in order to prepare for the upcoming Field visit to the different Zobas as well as the Sanitation Conference. The CLTS Foundation Global team also visited Badaraoh village in the Maekel Zoba (89 out of 94 villages are ODF) to see the villages which have embraced and consistently maintained the ODF status for a long time. It was also interesting to note that these community members had not just refrained from open defecation but had also invested their resources to move along the sanitation ladder to better sanitation facilities including hand-washing systems. The women of this community spoke out about the need for better sanitation and how their health, dignity, privacy, security and environment had significantly improved since they stopped the practice of open defecation. a

Day 6 (6th of December): Dr. Kamal Kar and Ms. Megha Sen along with Mr. Abraham Milash Head of Sanitation and Health Unit under the Ministry of Health and other members visited Anseba Zoba to understand the status and quality of CLTS implementation in these areas. Anseba Zoba has comparatively performed better and 199 out of the total 295 villages have been declared ODF. The team visited Fanna village in Haggaz sub-zoba, Anseba Zoba. This village had successfully maintained its ODF status for almost a decade and showcased massive strength through collective action and social solidarity mechanisms. The women community members of the village said, ‘We do not have to go very far in this heat anymore and we can use the toilet next to our house which gives us more privacy and security and we have witnessed its health benefits, as well.’ The community members also showed the visiting team a toilet they had constructed for an 84-year-old man who was unable to do it himself due to physical, financial and familial constraints. When asked about the inspiration to keep their village ODF, the community members said that they have seen the health gains and want to continue them through clean and healthy practices and surroundings. The community members were requested to join the upcoming National Sanitation Conference and present their sanitation story to the high officials and ministers.

Picture above: Interactive session with community members from Fanna Village, Haggaz sub-zoba, Anseba Zoba

Day 7 (7th of December): The visiting team continued their travel to Gash Barka Zoba to understand the reasons for the inefficient implementation and monitoring in this particular area. The Environmental Health Officers and the Medical Officers of the Zoba explained that one of the reasons for heavy slippage to OD rate was the presence of nomadic communities and the unavailability of material. Following this, the team met with General Tekhle, an Army official who has become a crusader against the practice of OD in the area and mobilized his army officers to make the Zoba ODF. He proudly said that the Zoba communities are capable of changing and sustaining their sanitation practices even before the official date of declaration. He also said that Gash Barka will set an example for other Zoba Army Generals to mobilize their troops in the fight against OD. The team proceeded to meet the Zoba Governor who said that though it is an ambitious task to make the Zoba ODF in a short span, keeping in mind the huge number of villages (937 Total and 211 ODF), all the efforts will be undertaken to make this a reality.

Picture above: National Sanitation Conference Day 1, Eritrea

Community Members presenting their sanitation story

Speech by Mr. Ian Richards, the British Ambassador to Eritrea

The post CLTS Foundation Global in National Sanitation Conference 2018, Eritrea appeared first on CLTS Foundation Global.

Dr Kamal Kar, Founder and Chairman, CLTS Foundation Global had been invited to the Convention and he participated on 1^st and 2^nd October 2018. The plenary sessions focused on the major role played by Swachh Bharat Mission in accelerating India’s progress towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal 6.2. in terms of the global advancement on those lines. This was followed by parallel sessions of Ministerial Dialogues where dialogues between the participating Ministers were facilitated by global experts in the field on building political will for sanitation, ensuring adequate financing and taking key steps required to work at scale and reach universal access. Dr Kar had the opportunity to meet the Sanitation Ministers and senior officials of various countries of Africa and Asia and we were humbled by the appreciation and respect shown to us by the esteemed representatives.

Below are some glimpses of Dr Kar’s meeting with some of the Hon’ble Ministers and senior delegates of Asia and Africa who were at the Convention.

Republic of Chad

Left: Hon’ble Mr Sidick Abdelkerim Haggar, Minister of Environment, Water and Fishery

Burkina Faso

Left to right: Mr Andre Patinde NONGUIERMA, Director General, Directorate of Sanitation,  Hon’ble Mr Niouga Ambroise Quedraogo, Minister of Water and Sanitation

Madagascar

Left to right: Mr RAZANADAHY Ferdinand, Director of Hygiene Promotion of the Ministry of WASH, Hon’ble Mr ANDRIANAMELASOA Lalaina, Secretary General of the Ministry of WASH

 Malawi

Left: Hon’ble Mr Atupele Austin Muluzi, Minister of Health & Population

Mongolia

Left to right: Ms TUYA Byambasuren, Officer, Division of International Cooperation, Hon’ble Ms BYAMBASUREN Lamjav, Vice Minister of Health

Côte d’Ivoire

Right: Madame BRAGORI Helene Epse YOCOLLY, Director of Rural Sanitation

Republic of Togo

Left: Hon’ble Mr Antoine Lekpa GBEGBENI, Minister of Water and Rural Hydraulic

Nigeria

Left: Hon’ble Mr Suleiman Hussein Adamu, Minister of Water Resources

India 

Hon’ble Shri Venkaiah Naidu, Vice President of India

India 

Hon’ble Shri Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India

India 

Hon’ble Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Union Minister of State with independent charge, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs

India 

Hon’ble Mrs Sushma Swaraj, Minister of External Affairs

United Nations

Hon’ble Mr Antonio Gueterres, Secretary General

The post CLTS Foundation Global at Mahatma Gandhi International Sanitation Convention, 2018 appeared first on CLTS Foundation Global.

Join us for an interesting session with Dr. Kamal Kar, Mr. Rolf Luyendijk, Ms. Wilhelmina Malima and Ms. Boluwatito Awe on Tuesday, 28th August 2018

The post Strategy for Fast-Tracking ODF Nations – A Mix, Mingle and Apero Side Session at the World Water Week, Stockholm, 2018 appeared first on CLTS Foundation Global.