Dear Colleagues,

Thank you so much for all the feedback! We have decided to call the emptiers the Sanitation team We found this to be a holistic name that covers all the work that they will do.

I am now finalising the concept on how we shall integrate the sanitation team within the UBSUP programme and I am excited to finish it quickly so that I can share it with all of you. If you like to learn a little bit about the current situation on manual emptiers, please follow the link below:

forum.susana.org/forum/categories/53-fae...-exhauster-operators

NB: Thanks Hans for that video. That was shot last year in Nairobi and I had the opportunity to watch it online too as we do not get the programme Quarks and Co. here in Kenya.

If you would like more information on UBSUP, please check out the post below:

forum.susana.org/forum/categories/97-ena...p-wstf-and-giz-Kenya

Best regards,

Doreen

Hello Doreen,
I saw you on a podcast about toilet research in Germany (German TV station WDR)
Go to at 32:30 min. Unfortunatly only in German language.

gffstream-8.vo.llnwd.net/c1/m/1390335696..._und_co_20140121.mp4

best regards
Hans

Interesting discussion.
The term "collector" is perhaps a bit too narrow?

I had a look at what Sanergy in Kenya calls their staff and found this:

• Logistics experts (saner.gy/archives/4508)
• Team member
• Fresh Life Operator (FLO)

Further ideas: sanitation worker; sanitary expert

By the way, Doreen you mentioned "beneficiaries". Shouldn't they be rather termed "clients" to make it clear that it's a normal service that they are getting (and to be paid for), not some "hand-me-down"?

Good to hear your update about USBUP on the forum, please do tell us more!
(here in this link: forum.susana.org/forum/categories/97-ena...p-wstf-and-giz-kenya)

Greetings,
Elisabeth

Maybe keep it a bit less a typical German way: "much as possibly serious, straight and only rational to the point desired"

Having very often German customer contacts, I realized even in Germany by talking about "pipi & kaka" in a more funny language made business easier and even opens hearts some times: e.g. "enkel-tauglich" = "suitably for grandchildren" or Honig-Sauger = honey-sucker.

Same funny association/smile I had many years ago when I heard first time the American term "honey-sucker".

Coming from there maybe "honey-collectors " is funny enough and not putting some one down. But the general Kenyan taste is more important them my or SUSANA-Forum one.

Something with "collector" sounds good as it involves the emptying but also transportation etc. But it should be somewhat descriptive of the actual job I think.

Humanure-collector?
Compost-collector? (that has a ring to it)
Refuse-collector?
Nightsoil-collector?

seriously: coming from the American "Honey-Sucker", maybe you go for "Honey-Harvester" or "Honey-Collector" or similar...

Toilet cleaners?
Toilet renewal team?
Compost collectors? (as I guess this is what you'd get from UDDTs)
Or borrowing from "Clean Team Ghana" (www.cleanteamtoilets.com/), or "Mr. Clean" (in Malawi)...

Dear Colleagues,

I am currently in the process of training manual emptiers who will be responsible for emptying the UDDTs that are being constructed in the low income arae. The emptiers will be integrated within the water utilities so when a beneficiary applies for a UDDT to be constructed in his plot, he shall be able to get a list of emptiers or a group within his low income area who will carry out the emptying at an affordable price.

see more information about UBSUP here in the website: ubsup.go.ke/
and here in the SuSanA forum: forum.susana.org/forum/categories/97-ena...f-and-giz-kenya#6607
manual emptiers issues raised in the forum: www.google.com/url?q=http://forum.susana..._LZEwRk_OQ-hioMD87SA

Now to ensure that we meet all the legal requirements, we have incorporated the public health officers who will assist us in training the emptiers in hygiene, safety, protective equipment, sanitation and the law. The public health office will be responsible in issuing authorisation letters to the emptiers together with the water utilities. In addition, the National Environmental Authority will issue the emptiers with waste transportation permits once they are trained and have the appropriate equipment in place.

Question:
• What is another name that I can use for emptiers?
• I don’t want to use the term manual emptiers because it has quite a lot of negative connotation
• Sludge managers is also not right because it suggests that they are dealing with sludge which is not the case.

Could you advise me with a suitable name for the groups that I will be training?

We need to ensure that the ostracism and stigmatisation that current manual emptiers face is non-existent within the UBSUP programme and that is why the name is very important to me.

Best regards,

Doreen