User:JustinePorto/Public toilets in Argentina

Public toilets in Argentina are not very common, found at a rate of around two public toilets per 100,000 people. They are often located at airports, bus stations, shopping malls, cafes, bars and restaurants. Few are accessible. Some may have attendants and charge a fee to use.

Public toilets
The local word for toilets is baños. Men's toilets are called hombres, caballeros, señores or varones, while women's toilets are called mujeres, damas or señoras.

Public toilets are not very common in Argentina, with 2021 study finding there were two public toilets per 100,000 people. Public toilets are rarely found in Buenos Aires.

People use public toilets in airports, bus stations, shopping malls, cafes, bars and restaurants. Shopping malls often have toilets that are accessible to the public, and they often tend to be very clean. Public toilets in airports and bus stations often have attendants, and many also charge for access which often includes the price of the toilet paper. The cost is generally around one to two pesos.

Many public toilets do not provide toilet paper, and if they do, they may charge for it. Small towns and rural areas often do not have sewage connections that allow for toilet paper to be flushed. People dispose of their toilet paper in small bins located next to the toilet.

The municipal government of Bariloche approved the building of new public toilets in the Civic Center in August 2022. They allocated 14 million pesos for a site on Calle San Martín that would be 60 meters large, contain men's toilets, women's toilets and accessible toilets. The public toilets would also be accessible for municipal workers in the area.

There is a mix of sit and squat toilets in Argentina. Bidet use remained popular in the 2010s. They can be found in some public toilets.

Regional and global situation impacting public toilets in Argentina
Baño is the most common way to say toilet in Spanish speaking countries. Other words for toilet include aseo, váter, retrete, servicio, lavabo, sanitarios, regadera, bidé, tina, lavamanos and orinal. Men's toilets are called hombres, while women's toilets are called mujeres. Unisex toilets are called baño unisex. Toilet paper is called papel higiénico.

Public toilet access around the world is most acute in the Global South, with around 3.6 billion people, 40% of the world's total population, lacking access to any toilet facilities. 2.3 people in the the Global South do not have toilet facilities in their residence. Despite the fact that the United Nation made a declaration in 2010 that clean water and sanitation is a human right, little has been done in many places towards addressing this on a wider level.

Sit flush toilets are the most common type of toilet in Latin America and South America. Most countries in Latin and South America do not have the sanitation infrastructure to support toilet paper being flushed. Trash cans are typically put next to the toilet to allow for easy disposal of toilet paper.

In the early 2000s, it was very rare for public toilets to have wheelchair access anywhere in South America. The few that were available tended to be at upscale shopping centers.

The Jennings & Company had installed their flush toilets in public toilets in Paris, Florence, Madrid, Berlin, Sydney and South America by 1895.