Figure 4-29 - Typical features of an accessible toilet block

4.4.4.3. Project 13: Accessible Public Toilet Blocks

Project Overview

Public toilets in the County typically do not meet the requirements of women and girls, nor people living with disability (PWD)69. Failing to plan, design or manage public toilets to ensure they are female-friendly and accessible to all users restricts the movement of women and girls, as well as older people and PWD, and limits their ability to participate in public life70 .

The Bus Park Relocation, Wote Jua-Kali Market Improvement and Kaiti River Park provide an opportunity to ensure that accessible public toilets are constructed to meet the sanitation needs of the people using the CBD and its markets as well as those who travel into the area for business and leisure activities. The toilets must be safe and private, be accessible to all users, be affordable and available when needed, be well maintained and managed, and meet the requirements of caregivers and parents. There are currently plans to build a sewer network and sewer treatment plant in Wote Municipality, however, in the short term the toilet blocks should be connected to a septic tank with a view to connect them to the sewer network once it has been built. In the meantime, the wastewater and sludge from the septic tanks should be treated at the decentralised wastewater/sludge treatment facility.

Given the shortage of water supply in the Municipality, especially during the dry seasons, the toilet blocks should seek to employ water efficiency measures such as water-saving flushes and recycling handwashing water to flush toilets.

There is an opportunity for the toilets to be run by a small business whereby an operator is appointed and collects an affordable fee per use, and pays for running costs such as the water, the sewerage fees and maintenance. This means the toilets have funds to continue functioning and providing a service to the community. The County may want to further subsidise particularly vulnerable or low-income people or give them a free pass.

Figure 4-29 - Typical features of an accessible toilet block

Source: WaterAid, Female-friendly public and community toilets: a guide for planners and decision makers (2018).

69 UNICEF, WaterAid and WSUP (2018). Female-friendly public and community toilets: a guide for planners and decision makers. WaterAid: London, UK. Available at: https://www.wateraid. org/us/sites/g/files/jkxoof291/files/Female_friendly_toilet_guide.pdf, (Accessed: 07/02/2022). 70 UNICEF, WaterAid and WSUP (2018). Female-friendly public and community toilets: a guide for planners and decision makers. WaterAid: London, UK. Available at: https://www.wateraid. org/us/sites/g/files/jkxoof291/files/Female_friendly_toilet_guide.pdf, (Accessed: 07/02/2022).