Ally Jamah

An International Competition for the best public toilet design has kicked off in a bid to generate best toilets that cut waste of water and spread of fatal diseases.

Kenyan architects have an opportunity to present their toilet design as the world explores ways of moving beyond the flush toilet that consumes excessive amounts of drinking water

"There is a huge potential for improving the designs of existing toilet systems and introducing new functionalities for harvesting and treating water along with the structure of a toilet," says a proposal by the organizer, the World Toilet Organisation.

Experts in Kenya have been calling for the elimination of the flush toilets popular in cities like Nairobi and Mombasa which use millions of litres of clean water to eliminate waste.

Solutions are also urgently needed for the urban poor who live in crammed informal settlements without adequate toilet facilities, a scenario which has resulted in waste being dumped in polythene bags and disposed haphazardly.

"Public toilets are necessary infrastructure that satisfies the needs of citizens, visitors and tourists. They are also a reflection of a city’s progress into modern civilization," adds the proposal.

The designs should demonstrate energy-saving, environmental protection, economic visibility, sustainability, development of technology and heavy user traffic components.

30 winners will be awarded prizes on different categories Deadline of submission is in July

The best design will be showcased in the World Toilet Summit and Expo in November this year in China.

"One of the reasons for the lack of innovations in low cost toilets is that new designs of low cost toilets are unlikely to be patentable or have great commercial value," say the organisers.

The categories of prize are "public toilet in tourist spot", "public toilet in urban districts" and "public toilet in poor district".

A similar contest organised for Indian designers and architects last year in a bid to diffuse 1 million safe sanitation systems to low income communities attracted huge interest and innovative designs.

" Its experience in the field has confirmed that complete and safe sanitation coverage cannot occur, without a better identification of appropriate toilet technologies," they said.

Public toilet designs must be low-maintenance, graffiti-resistant, use natural lighting as much as possible.