User:JustinePorto/Public toilets in Botswana

Public toilets in Botswana are more numerous than any other country in Africa. It often costs money to use them and toilet paper is not provided. Squat toilets are typical. Toilet in schools rarely work. Campsite facilities are often limited.

Public toilets
The local word for public toilet is Ntlo Ya Bakgatla. A 2021 study found there were 8 public toilets per 100,000 people. This was the most of any country in Africa included in the study. This put the Botswana on par with the United States and behind world leading Iceland, who had 56 public toilets per 100,000 residents. The typical charge to use a public toilet is BWP2.50. Public toilets are often squat toilets and they rarely have toilet paper.

It cost around USD$0.9 to use a public toilet in 2007.

In schools with toilets in 2018, 80% of the toilets did not flush correctly. Schools provided limited handwashing supplies in 2018.

Most campsites have limited facilities, so people are encouraged to burn used toilet paper and take all their litter with them. Remote campsites often do not have modern bathroom facilities. Instead, they have pit toilets and bucket showers.

Open defecation and sanitation
Progress began to be made in general waste management in the 1990s.

diarrheal diseases, often caused by lack of access to clean water, were the third biggest killer in Botswana in 2017.

Regional and global situation impacting public toilets in Botswana
Around 2.5 billion people around the world in 2018 did not have access to adequate toilet facilities. Around 4.5 billion people lacked access to proper sanitation. 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.

An issue in developing countries is toilet access in schools. Only 46% of schools in developing countries have them. Many schools around the world in 2018 did not have toilets, with the problem particularly acute in parts of Africa and Asia. Only one in five primary schools on earth had a toilet and only one in eight secondary schools had public toilets. 344 million children in sub-Saharan Africa did not have a toilet in their home in 2018. The lack of toilet access put these children at risk of water borne diseases.

Across Africa, open defecation had social consequences. These included loss of dignity and privacy. It also put women at risk of sexual violence.

There are generally two toilet styles in public bathrooms in Africa. One is a traditional squat toilet. The other is a western style toilet with bowl and a place to sit.