World Toilet Day 2022: 5 facts you need to know about sanitation

World Toilet Day is held every year on November 19 to draw the world's attention to the importance of accessible toilets and their role in improving hygiene and health around the world. The day has been observed by the United Nations Observance since 2013. The 2022 theme for the day is ‘Making the invisible visible’.

The central message of World Toilet Day 2022 is that safely managed sanitation protects groundwater from human waste pollution.

Inadequate sanitation systems spread human waste into rivers, lakes soil, polluting vital water resources.

Saturday's WorldToiletDay is an opportunity to draw attention to the importance of having access to safely-managed sanitation. https://t.co/RRwWndNejM via @UN_Water pic.twitter.com/xuCvm0a9mq

— United Nations (@UN) November 19, 2022

Five facts you need to know on World Toilet Day 2022

1. Safe sanitation protects groundwater. Toilets that are properly sited and connected to safely managed sanitation systems, collect, treat and dispose of human waste, and help prevent human waste from spreading into groundwater.
2. Poor sanitation increases the risk for malnutrition and disease, especially for women and children.
3. More people in the world have access to mobile phones than toilets. 
4. 3.6 billion people live without access to safely managed sanitation, according to the UN.
5. As a part of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, the UN hopes to ensure the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.

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