In Senegal, Sanitation Means Dignity
Jennifer Mack, USAID’s Global Water Coordinator (center) visits the home of a Sagal customer with sales agents and ACCES project team members. Photo credit: Oliver Subasinghe/USAID
Summary
Like many of us, Fatou Badji balances a hectic schedule. She is the chairlady of a women's group that sells onions and other essentials. She is also on the frontlines of addressing the global sanitation crisis.
Today, six in 10 people lack proper sanitation, costing economies $260 billion annually. Poor sanitation leads to the deaths of more than a quarter-million children annually, and affects the safety of women and girls.
On my recent trip to Senegal, I had the privilege to meet Fatou and her group members who are working to increase access to sanitation services in the region of Ziguinchor. Despite significant progress made on drinking water access, Senegal still faces sanitation challenges. To address the lack of affordable and appropriate sanitation options, USAID/Senegal is promoting market-based approaches to create viable and local sanitation businesses that harness global innovations and engage the private sector. This promising approach has the potential to reach the billions of people who are not connected to centralized sewer systems worldwide.