Every day, millions of people in fast-growing towns and peri-urban settlements fight a silent battle ? not for luxury or convenience, but simply for a safe place to relieve themselves. With more than two billion people lacking adequate sanitation, the world?s sanitation crisis continues to hit the poorest communities the hardest.

For decades, the default solution has been conventional sewerage. But in reality, it is a system built for high-income, low-density neighbourhoods -  too expensive, too water-hungry, and often impossible to install in the crowded, irregular layouts of informal settlements. This means the poorest households are left last in line, relying on unsafe pits, shared toilets, or no toilets at all.

The good news -  Engineers around the world have developed a range of low-cost, pro-poor sanitation technologies designed to meet the needs of high-density, low-income areas. From simplified sewers to innovative onsite systems, these solutions show that technology can be adapted to serve the poor, if the right conditions are in place.

But here's the challenge: A technology is only pro-poor if the system around it is pro-poor.

Lack of investment, weak cost recovery, rigid engineering standards, perceptions that low-cost options are inferior, and limited engagement with communities all undermine progress. Many sanitation schemes fail not because the technology is wrong, but because social, financial, and institutional barriers are never addressed.

As cities continue to expand, the path forward is clear: engineers, social scientists, policymakers, and communities must work together to design sanitation systems that are affordable, practical, and rooted in real needs.

Because when sanitation technology is shaped by the realities of the poor - not just the assumptions of the rich, it becomes more than infrastructure.

Dear all,
Sharing this interesting piece titled We need to frame the climate problem differently  While the piece is focused on climate change, the issues raised are pertinent. As the author points out, the city of Bangalore imports water from 100 km away while not managing the abundant precipitation it receives. Dealing with such inefficiencies is absolutely necessary. Similarly, exploiting cross-sectoral syergies is also necessary. 

What other inefficiencies in the sector do you think we need to start managing before making more investments to keep existing systems running or reproducing such systems elsewhere? 

Regards
paresh