A community has toilets, thanks to you
The most exciting part of our job is telling our community about the amazing things they’ve helped up accomplish through their support. And this is that time!
We are thrilled to announce that we’ve just donated $10,000 AUD to Shining Hope For Communities (SHOFCO) to support their new project in Mathare, one of Nairobi’s oldest slums. Our donation is going to build brand new toilets that will provide proper sanitation to thousands of people. Because you wipe with us, five villages in Mathare will now have access to toilets. Incredible!
If you’re unfamiliar with Mathare, it’s a valley in Nairobi that’s home to about 400,000 people. It’s one of the oldest and most densely populated slums in the Kenyan capital. Describing slum life is complex – of course, there's a lot of community and life, but there is also a lot of poverty. Most homes are made from just mud and corrugated metal. The Mathare river carries tonnes of garbage and industrial waste through the settlement. Only a century ago, this river was the main source of drinking water for the community.
Now, clean water is difficult (if not impossible) to come by. Services like sanitation and water are expensive and the majority of people in Mathare live on less than $1 a day. Using a toilet just once daily could cost 5-7% of a person’s income. To avoid this exorbitant cost, residents use the bathroom outside, which is unpleasant, unhygienic and unsafe (particularly for women and girls). Many people resort to the “flying toilet method,” which means using a plastic bag as a loo and disposing of it in the gutter or throwing it as far away as possible. Exposure to untreated human waste causes awful disease, which can be especially fatal to children.
We know it’s not fun to think about, but we think it’s important to understand how much of a difference these toilets could make. This project is vital – these toilets will be financially accessible, clean and safe. They will be not only life-changing, but also life-saving.
We are honoured to be working with SHOFCO again and can’t wait to keep you updated on this exciting build! After all, none of this would be possible without you (and your bum).
If you want to support future sanitation partnerships, check out our loo roll! And be sure to share the news – the more people we reach, the more toilets we can help build. So spread the word! The word being toilets, of course.