Research Brief India, Urban Sanitation, and the Toilet Challenge

• More than 40 % of the world’s population lacks improved sanitation facilities, and India’s urban sanitation coverage rate is only 50%. • Consequences of poor sanitation are devastating on human health and the environment. • Many urban areas provide access to toilets, yet often upkeep is lacking, septage is not well managed, and sewerage is discharged untreated. Much of the world’s population is in dire need of improved sanitation, but it remains a neglected priority. The United Nations Millennium Development Goals include a global target of a 75 % improvement in sanitation coverage by 2015, but with current progress rates, this target is one of the most inaccessible.1 Currently, 2.5 billion people do not have access to improved sanitation worldwide, and nearly 1.1 billio