THE limited number of public toilets in Bulawayo’s central business district (CBD) is worrying both the city fathers and the residents alike amid concerns over open defecation and urination along sanitary lanes and street corners.
The concerns are raised in the latest council minutes on public toilets provision in the CBD.
Health Services director Edwin Mzingwane Sibanda reported last month that the CBD was the city’s commercial and administrative hub, experiencing high daily human traffic from residents, visitors, vendors, commuters and tourists, hence public toilets were an expected basic service.
“Access to safe, clean, and well-maintained public toilets was critical for public health, dignity and the city’s image,” the minutes read.
“The existing number and distribution of public toilets remained insufficient, with some facilities either too far apart, in poor condition, overwhelmed by usage or understaffed.
“This situation had led to increased incidents of open urination and defecation, particularly in sanitary lanes, open spaces and around informal trading areas.”
The public toilet situation within the city centre was characterised by a limited number of operational public toilets, which was insufficient to meet the demand generated by daily activities, according to council.
“These facilities were unevenly distributed across the CBD, resulting in some high-traffic areas being inadequately served while others experience excessive pressure on the available infrastructure.
- Revisiting Majaivana’s last show… ‘We made huge losses’
- Edutainment mix: The nexus of music and cultural identity
- ChiTown acting mayor blocks election
- Promoter Mdu 3D defends foreigners 30 minute set
Keep Reading
“For example, between 11th Avenue and 15th Avenue, there were no public toilets and two public toilets along 15th Avenue were closed due to their state of disrepair.
“A number of the existing public toilets required rehabilitation and improved management in order to ensure acceptable hygiene standards, user convenience, and sustainability of operations.
“The situation was further compounded by high vandalism rate which reduced the effectiveness of current facilities.”
The minutes state that there are currently 10 functional public toilets in the CBD and of these, three were free, located at Fifth Avenue and 8th Avenue, while the remaining facilities operate as pay toilets.
Regarding ownership, eight of the 10 toilets were council-owned, operating as free, pay or leased-out facilities, while two were privately owned, being Egodini Terminus and Pick n Pay.
“This limited number of facilities underscores the need for strategic expansion and improved management of public toilets in the CBD.
“Outside the CBD, the city had 86 public toilets, 18 of which are currently operational. The remaining 68 were closed due to water-shedding, labour shortages and disrepair.
“Additionally, the department was crafting a Public Toilet Strategy to guide the provision of public toilets in the city.”
Regarding the proposed interventions, the council noted that on short-term, increasing the manning levels in the available free public toilets would assist.
It said in the city centre, two free toilets are manned by two pan cleaners instead of four.
“One pan cleaner cleans both the male and female toilets and due to the busy nature of the toilet, they cannot keep pace with the required rate of cleanliness.”
Hence, there is need to identify at least six toilets that could be leased and converted into public toilets, rehabilitate existing facilities, upgrade ageing toilets to improve usability, improve lighting, ventilation, and security and complete the public toilet strategy.
In the long term, construction of additional permanent public toilets, identifying strategic high-traffic locations within the CBD and constructing modern, durable, and disability- friendly toilet blocks would be ideal.
Engaging public–private partnerships with the private operators under build-operate-transfer or leasing arrangements would improve the city facilities was also proposed, just as cost recovery through nominal user fees or advertising.
