The Water Research Commission and the Toilet Board Coalition have come together to identify the business opportunities in the Sanitation Economy specific to Africa.

Our sanitation challenge in South Africa is a continuous
one. Dealing with the inequities of the past, coupled
with a dichotomy in society through apartheid spatial
planning and the new perils of nature in the form of
climate change puts a huge pressure on how we roll out
sanitation in the future. We do not see the current norms
in sanitation technology in the form of high flush toilets
sustaining in the future in terms of both water and
sanitation security. It was at the National Sanitation
Summit in 2015, hosted by my Department, where the
then Deputy President – Cyril Ramaphosa issued a clarion
call “its not all about flushing”.

This was a call and recognition for serious Sanitation
Transformation in the sector. This was a call to tackle
the binary problem of gold standards for rich and hole
standard for the poor. This was a call that our destiny on
sanitation should not be attached to the flushing of human
wastes. This on the recognition that climate change will
put greater constraints on sanitation than drinking water,
and disrupting this sanitation environment with smart
sanitation solutions and service models is the kind of
transformation which was required.

Bibliographic information

Akinsete, A., Bhagwan, J., Hicks, C., Knezovich, A., Naidoo, D., Naidoo, V., Pillay,S. (2019). The Sanitation Economy Opportunity for South Africa Sustainable Solutions for Water Security & Sanitation - A Business Perspective Water Research Commission, Toilet Board Coalition

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