Globally, 526 million women are forced to go to the toilet in the open.
Without accessible toilets for these populations, they remain excluded from opportunities to attend school and gain employment.
Madagascar.Vanessa, 17, is a student who lives in Antananarivo.
She says she worries when she is on her period at school.
It is 20 square meters.
35% of the population of Buzescu village are Romas who are prosperous and proud to show it off.
However, there is no running water or sewerage in the village so toilets are on-site.
(Photo by Petrut Calinescu/WSUP/Panos)
Brazil.Lorena, 16, is a student.
She has just moved into one of Rio de Janeiro’s favelas.
I dont have a toilet but I am working hard to try and build one.
In the meantime, I have to use my mother’s.
We only get water on Thursdays and Sundays, when the taps are opened.
One day I would like to have a bathroom with running water.
(Photo by Eduardo Martino/WSUP/Panos)
India.
Saritadevi lives in Ittava village in Uttar Pradesh.
She has no access to a toilet in her house and so uses a local field.
She suffers from a lack of dignity and privacy when she visits the toilet.
She moved from the countryside when her husband got a job in Dhaka.
The toilet she uses is known as a shared hanging toilet and is situated 20 metres from her house.
She got very scared and since then, she has been too scared to use the toilet after 9pm.
(Photo by GMB Akash/WSUP/Panos)
Belgium.Rosalie, 9, goes to school in Brussels.
At my school we have separate toilets for girls and boys on every floor.
My classroom is on the 3rd floor.
We have 22 toilets, which are shared between 230 pupils and 20 adults.
The teachers at school let us go to the toilet whenever we need to.
(Photo by Tim Dirven/WSUP/Panos)
Mozambique.
Assucena, 14, is a Grade 8 student who loves to study and play football.
She lives with her mother, grandmother, sister and two cousins.
Her grandmother sells beer to provide for her extended family.
Assucena shares a toilet with more than 30 other people from different families.
When it rains, the toilet floods.
It really smells bad.
They are convenient and cleaned daily by the maid.
We used to have a portable toilet, which had to be emptied every so often.
It was very smelly and not very nice.
It also makes a big difference when we have Open Days.
We wouldnt have been allowed to host this event without the compost loo.
I was attacked by Polio at the age of two.
Its not easy being disabled in Lusaka.
(Photo by James Oatway/WSUP/Panos)
USA.Mary is a writer who lives in New York City.
Living with two housemates, it is important to schedule our bathroom time and take turns cleaning it.
That experience made me really appreciate the privacy and comfort of having a clean toilet at home.
It was terrible in the bush, the cars hit you.
When we were given a Porta Potty in 2009, it was much better than going in the bush.
Flush toilets are first class compared to the Porta Potty though.
My dream is to have a flush toilet.
(Photo by Eric Miller/WSUP/Panos)
Romania.
Pana, 49, lives in Buzescu.
She uses the outside toilet, even in the winter.
(Photo by Petrut Calinescu/WSUP/Panos)
Mozambique.Flora, 19, is a high school student.
She lives in Chamanculo C in Maputo with her mother, sister and niece.
She shares a toilet with several other families living nearby.
“I hate using the toilet.
Sometimes men peek over the fence.
There is no privacy.”
(Photo by James Oatway/WSUP/Panos)
Kenya.Eunice is the Co-Founder of Kasarani Academy in Naivasha.
Previously, the school only had two toilets which were used by 250 pupils.
Tenants living nearby used the toilets as well and left them in a poor condition.
Eunice and her husband Paul have now invested in child-friendly toilets.
These tiny toilets have prevented adults using them as they cannot fit through the doors.
Parents will enrol their children here because of our child friendly toilets.
(Photo by Frederic Courbet/WSUP/Panos)
Japan.Eiko, 61, lives in Tokyo.
Since this department store is close to my home, I often come here for shopping.
I could spend many hours here!
The toilets are an extreme example of good sanitation and have features like surround sound music and heated seats.
(Photo by Noriko Hayashi/WSUP/Panos)
India.Sangita, 35, moved to Delhi City 10 years ago.
This made her adamant that she would have her own toilet in Delhi.
(Photo by Atul Loke/WSUP/Panos)
Haiti.Martine is 27 years old.
She lives near a river in Cayimithe.
I don’t have an enclosed toilet.
I only use it at night when I can have some privacy.
In the day time, I use a community toilet which is about 15 minutes away from my house.
She lives in a rented room with her husband and four children aged 14-22.
She does not have a toilet at home.
(Photo by Nyani Quarmyne/WSUP/Panos)
Ethiopia.
She was widowed nine years ago when her husband was shot during the aftermath of the 2005 elections.
(Photo by Petterik Wiggers/WSUP/Panos)
Ecuador.Fabiola, 69, lives in Cumbaya, a valley near Quito.
Now she lives in a large apartment, which has five bathrooms.
(Photo by Karla Gachet/WSUP/Panos)
Brazil.Isabela, 33, lives alone in a penthouse in Rio de Janeiro.
She has an MBA in environmental law and works as a fine artist.
“My toilet means comfort to me.
But I know what is behind it: water supply, sewerage, pollution of lakes and oceans.
It’s a privilege.
I have a clean water supply, hot water and a comfortable toilet seat.”
She has built a shed on ten acres of land and has included an outside toilet and bathroom.
She uses a hanging toilet - a platform built over water - from which she recently fell.
She says she often suffers from illnesses that she believes are because of using these toilets.
Sources:BBC/United Nations/The Independent/Avax News
