Toilet Twinning - Charity CORD aims to improve Africa's water and sanitation
Last updated 24/06/2009 19:47:30
Toilet Twinning - Charity CORD aims to improve Africas water and sanitation
The charity CORD is leading the first global toilet twinning - an innovative campaign linking toilets around the world with those being built in Burundi by families returning from exile in Tanzania.
Improving water and sanitation is key to CORD's programme in remote Giharo Commune. CORD says that over the past 18 months it's helped local returnees to build 870 pit latrines, each benefiting a family of six.
It means 5,220 people can now go to the loo in a safe, private and hygienic place - and it plans to double that number. Blocks of toilets have also been built at 3 primary schools, alongside water points - all part of its hygiene and sanitation training.
Jasmine O'Connor, CORD'S Head of Africa Programmes, said: "At current rates of progress the Millennium Development Goals for sanitation will not be met until the 22nd century, over eighty years too late.
"Our work in Giharo is going to be duplicated in the coming year and the toilet twinning is a novel but vital way of lending your support to people who have returned home and are rebuilding their lives from scratch."
For £60 twinners can twin their toilet at home, at their office or school with one deep in the African bush of Rutana Province- and track it down to its exact location via Google Earth.
The Bishop of Coventry has become one of the world's first toilet twinners - linking his loo with its ‘twin' deep in the African bush. Bishop Christopher said: "It's a bog standard idea with a great message. Forty per cent of the world's population - 2.6 billion people - don't have access to a toilet and it's hard to imagine what that must be like.
"Left lying around, human waste is a killer and without proper sanitation and health training, Burundians can't hope to keep well, to work, go to school and begin to rebuild their country."
The Rt. Reverend Christopher Cocksworth invited the press into his smallest room at the Bishop's House, and proudly displayed the picture of his exclusive twin latrine, complete with its Google Earth location so he can pinpoint it in the remote Rutana Province of Burundi.
As a twinner participants receive a special one off certificate to display in their smallest room picturing their twin, its exact location and Google map reference.
The first 500 Twinnings are on sale now via a special CORD website: www.toilettwinning.org or by calling 01926 315301. And those involved can get their friends twinning too via CORD's Twitter page twitter.com/corduk
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