Choosing the right post-2015 sanitation indicators

In just under 500 days, we will reach the 2015 deadline for the Millennium Development Goals. Some of those goals will be met, and I hope that those involved will take a moment to celebrate. But that isn’t the case for those of us working in the area of sanitation.

We are among the furthest from achieving our MDG target, which is to reduce by half the number of people who don’t have access to improved sanitation. Falling short of this target is a major disappointment, but we also need to recognize that the indicator itself does not capture the breadth of the sanitation challenge. Put simply: in order to accelerate change that truly improves and saves lives, we will need to change what we measure.

No doubt, providing people with access to toilets is a critical step. However, what we have found over the years since the MDGs were set is that mere access to toilets does not result in safe sanitation. Toilets are necessary, but not sufficient. Two more steps are required: people have to use the toilets, and the waste contained by toilets must not be released untreated into the environment, where it will make people sick.