The United Nations General Assembly
adopted a resolution to mark "World Toilet Day." The day will be
celebrated November 19. "The amusement and laughter likely to
follow the designation of 19 November as 'World Toilet Day' would
all be worthwhile if people’s attention was drawn to the fact that
2.5 billion people lacked proper sanitation and 1.1 billion were
forced to defecate in the open, the General Assembly heard today,"
a U.N. press release reads.
“Ending open defecation will lead to a 35 per cent reduction in
diarrhea, which results in over 750,000 deaths of children under
five years of age every year,” Singapore’s representative said.
Apart from establishing World Toilet Day, the text also urged
Member States and the United Nations system to encourage
behavioral change, to introduce policies that would increase
sanitation among the poor.
India's novel approach is to encourage families not to let their
daughters marry if the potential husband does not have a toilet.
The initiative from the government is called "No toilet, no
bride". There are more temples than toilets in India, said Union
Minister Jairam Ramesh.
The Indian state of Madhya Pradesh pays for a wedding and provides
qualifying couples with housewarming gifts totaling 15,000 rupees
(about $270) if they can prove the husband-to-be's house has a
toilet.
Over 75 per cent of the 1.2 billion Indian population currently
have a mobile phone subscription, but only 50 per cent of
households have a toilet and only 11 per cent have one connected
to the sewerage system, according to the 2011 Indian census. I
love the headline from the Washington Post, "In India, New Seat
of Power for Women".