Progress and slippage of sanitation and hygiene targets in Malawi: is SDG6.2 achievable?

Rebekah Grace Kudakwashe Hinton*, Laurent Charles Tremblay-Lévesque, Christopher Macleod, Mads Troldborg, Modesta Kanjaye, Robert Kalin

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

1 Citation (Scopus)

Abstract

Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 aims to achieve ‘access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defae-cation’ by 2030. We present an in-depth investigation of sanitation and hygiene practices of 939 Malawian households in two districts, previously declared open defaecation-free (ODF). We evaluated whether ODF status was maintained by evaluating access to sanitation and hygiene. We found that 17% returned to open defaecation, and faeces were observed around 10% of the households. We suggest that ODF status is not enough; work is required to maintain progress and consideration of construction quality is critical. Another barrier to SDG 6.2 was that only 7.9% of households had handwashing facilities with soap and water, with soap as a major limitation. However, most households (82%) had soap available for washing suggesting that soap is not being prioritised in handwashing.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)633-644
Number of pages12
JournalJournal of Water Sanitation and Hygiene for Development
Volume14
Issue number8
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Aug 2024

Keywords

  • handwashing
  • hygiene
  • open defaecation
  • sanitation
  • sustainable development goals

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