Science Foundation: Problems Associated with Lack of Sanitation Essay

This essay addresses the significant global issue of inadequate sanitation. It explores the detrimental effects on public health, including the spread of waterborne diseases, intestinal infections, and malnutrition, particularly affecting children. The essay highlights the environmental consequences, such as water and soil contamination from human, industrial, and agricultural waste, leading to various fatal diseases. It also emphasizes the social implications, especially for women and girls, who face safety and security concerns due to a lack of private sanitation facilities. The essay suggests solutions such as government initiatives to build public toilets, educational campaigns, and the provision of clean water and separate toilets in schools to tackle these problems. The author concludes by stressing the urgent need for global cooperation to eliminate this threat to human health and the environment.

Running head: PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH LACK OF SANITATION
Problems associated with Lack of Sanitation
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author note:

1PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH LACK OF SANITATION
Sanitation can be explained as the way of promoting and maintaining hygiene, by
preventing an individual from direct contact with waste materials mainly faeces, by properly
treating and disposing the waste materials. The wastes can be biological or chemical agents,
including human excreta, which cause serious health problems if it comes in direct contact
with the individual (Garriga & Foguet, 2013).
The essay highlights the problems which are associated with the lack of sanitation in
several countries. It is still a major issue in many developing countries. Majority of the
people have no access to toilets, even if they have those are not hygienic, which creates
serious health issues. Approximately, over 2.4 billion people still lack improved and proper
sanitation facilities.
The essay throws light on the current scenario of the sanitation facilities, the problems
associated with it and how it can be curbed. It also includes some major steps that should be
undertaken to eradicate this menace from the world as fast as possible.
According to the UNICEF Executive Director, about 40% population of the world
still lack accessibility to proper and improved toilets. Absence of proper sanitation causes
serious health, environmental and social problems especially to the children. It leads to water
borne diseases, intestinal infections, stunted growth in children, malnutrition, anemia,
cholera, malaria, diarrhea and several others (Unicef.org. 2017). Proper sanitation and
washing hands with soap helps in preventing the transfer of several bacteria and parasites.
Wastes like human excreta, industrial, agricultural and others, contaminate with water and
soil causing several fatal diseases. Diarrhea is one of the major fatal diseases, which can
cause death to many, especially children, in the developing countries. Urinating openly can
cause several diseases which can transmit from person to person by contaminating soil, water
and food (Briceño, Coville, & Martinez, 2015).

2PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH LACK OF SANITATION
Imparting education related to proper sanitation system is very important. Schools
play a very important role in this, by initiating and adopting proper measures on health and
hygiene. Institutions should promote and encourage the students in using clean toilets and
washing their hands after urinating (World Health Organization. 2017). Teachers can be a
role model in this by imparting education on sanitation, not only to the students but also to
the community. Some schools lack clean and poor sanitation facilities as well as safe drinking
water which contributes to high dropout rates and absenteeism. It is important to educate
people about proper sanitation system and the consequences of poor facilities. Several
campaigns must be organized, especially in rural areas to educate people regarding this
(Sommer, & Caruso, 2015).
In many places, especially in developing countries, many rural people still lack access
to the basic needs such as proper food, drinking water, shelter, clothing, health and education.
They don’t feel the need of building toilets due to lack of education and money. The Ebola
crisis in the West Africa was due to lack of proper sanitation and hygiene, which was a tragic
crisis as it infected many. Government must undertake projects to build public toilets,
especially in rural areas, where people can access it for free. Public toilets must be cleaned on
a regular basis in order to prevent contaminated diseases (World Health Organization. 2015).
Mainly women and girls have to bear the burden of poor sanitation facilities. It raises
questions on their safety and security. They feel ashamed and lose their dignity, while
urinating openly. Firstly, in many places, women and girls can defecate only in the day time,
if they don’t have a toilet in their homes. After dark, they are not allowed to defecate, which
can result in serious health problems and illness. This is because there is a probability of
harassment in the night time, while going to the defecation fields (Unicef.org. 2017).
Secondly, many schools lack safe, clean and separate toilets for girls which is one of the
major factors which forces them to leave school. Moreover, lack of washing facilities also

3PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH LACK OF SANITATION
causes health hazards for them, especially when they menstruate. Thirdly, it greatly effects
pregnant women and causes genital infections when they defecate openly. Fourthly, many
children get sick through direct contact with the excreta, which litter their surroundings.
Taking care of the sick children increases the pressure of women as they are already loaded
with other works (Jewitt & Ryley, 2014).
The wastes get directly disposed to the fields which causes great problem to the
environment. The quality of the soil degrades resulting in land pollution, causing harm to
many plants and crops. Several wastes make the environment dirty and smelly (Unicef.org.
2017). The infectious germs in air can affect anyone, causing several respiratory problems
and air pollution. Moreover, water gets contaminated which gives rise to water borne
diseases. It also harms aquatic plants and animals, causing water pollution, as the industrial
and agricultural wastes flow to the water bodies (Castro, 2012).
There are several steps that need to be adopted urgently in order to prevent such
issues. Firstly, government should undertake projects of building more and more clean and
free public toilets. Secondly, campaigns should be organized, especially in the rural areas, to
educate them in undertaking proper sanitation measures, which include washing hands. Free
soaps should be given to the rural people (Sommer & Sahin, 2013). Thirdly, schools should
have clean drinking water facilities and separate toilets for girls, in order to provide them
security. People living at places with no or less number of toilets, should be encouraged to
use the school’s washrooms (Bartram et al., 2005). Fourthly, free education on sanitation
must be given at every schools and communities in order to aware people of the
consequences. Lastly, clean portable and mobile public toilets must be in every place, where
people have less or no accessibility to proper sanitation facilities (Who.int. 2017).

4PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH LACK OF SANITATION
To conclude, sanitation is a major issue in any developing country. It not only harms
an individual or a community, but also causes great damage to the environment and animals.
Proper measures and sanitation facilities must be adopted, in order to prevent fatal diseases.
People must have the basic right to use public toilets as lack of sanitation threatens their life.
Several organizations hold campaign to promote good sanitation facilities and safe drinking
water to everyone. At many places, due to lack of education, people don’t use public toilets
and prefer defecating openly. This should be taken care of by imparting education to them. It
is important to work hand in hand in eradicating this menace from the world.

5PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH LACK OF SANITATION
References
Bartram, J., Lewis, K., Lenton, R. & Wright, A. (2005). Focusing on improved water and
sanitation for health. The Lancet. 365(9461): 810-812. [Online]. Available at:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140673605179914 [Accessed 15
July 2017].
Briceño, B., Coville, A., & Martinez, S. (2015). Promoting handwashing and sanitation:
evidence from a large-scale randomized trial in rural Tanzania.
Castro, J. E. (2012). Water and sanitation services: public policy and management. Earthscan.
Garriga, R. G., & Foguet, A. P. (2013). Water, sanitation, hygiene and rural poverty: issues of
sector monitoring and the role of aggregated indicators. Water Policy, 15(6), 1018-
1045.
Jewitt, S., & Ryley, H. (2014). It’sa girl thing: Menstruation, school attendance, spatial
mobility and wider gender inequalities in Kenya. Geoforum, 56, 137-147.
Sommer, M. & Caruso, B. (2015). Gender equality comes one toilet at a time. The
Conversation. 15 November 2015. [Online]. Available at:
https://theconversation.com/gender-equality-comes-one-toilet-at-a-time-50700
[Accessed 15 July 2017].
Sommer, M., & Sahin, M. (2013). Overcoming the taboo: advancing the global agenda for
menstrual hygiene management for schoolgirls. American journal of public
health, 103(9), 1556-1559.
Unicef.org. (2017). WASH and Women. UNICEF. Retrieved 10 August 2017, from
https://www.unicef.org/wash/index_womenandgirls.html
Unicef.org. (2017). Water, sanitation and hygiene in schools. UNICEF. Retrieved 10 August
2017, from https://www.unicef.org/wash/index_schools.html

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Who.int. (2017). WHO | Poor sanitation threatens public health. Who.int. Retrieved 10
August 2017, from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2008/pr08/en/
World Health Organisation. (2017). Sanitation. [Online]. Available at:
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs392/en/ [Accessed 15 July 2017]
World Health Organization. (2015). Progress on sanitation and drinking water: 2015 update
and MDG assessment. World Health Organization.