WASH alliance says to build 35,000 toilets across Uganda

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In an effort to combat sanitation-related diseases, AMREF and Rotary Uganda have launched the AMREF Rotary Wash Alliance, an ambitious programme that aims to build 35,000 toilets in vulnerable communities across Uganda by 2030.

The initiative, according to the alliance, will target regions such as Rwenzori, Busoga, and northern Uganda, where poor sanitation remains a leading cause of preventable illnesses.

“What we are trying to do is identify these communities and make sure that we cut diseases caused by poor sanitation,” Dr Patrick Kagurusi, the country manager Amref Health Africa-Uganda, said at the launch.

Although Kampala is the capital city, it, too, faces serious sanitation challenges. Some households lack safely managed facilities, and during floods, waste often spills into communities, creating a major health hazard.

Speaking during the signing of the partnership on September 12, 2025, in Kampala, Kagurusi said this programme builds on AMREF’s 35 years of experience in supporting communities and institutions with clean water and safe sanitation.

Unlike handouts, the initiative emphasises shared responsibility. Families may contribute materials such as bricks, while the alliance provides technical expertise to complete construction.

The campaign highlights a multi-sectoral partnership that brings together communities, Rotary, government agencies, and the private sector to drive sustainable change.

Geoffrey Kitakule District Governor Rotary 9213 said the partnership will run for a period of over three years, starting in areas where Amref is already doing the work, with the goal of improving access to sanitation.

"When you improve sanitation, you improve people’s health. This, in turn, ensures that children can access education, while mothers can redirect the money they would have spent on treating sanitation-related illnesses towards building resources that empower them and improve their quality of life,’’ Kitakule said.

Open defecation challenge

The initiative is timely, considering that Gulu authorities early this year decried the rising incidence of open defecation in the city. Open defecation refers to the practice of defecating in fields, forests, bushes, bodies of water, or other open spaces.

The authorities said the vice is primarily because of vulnerable populations such as street children, intoxicated individuals returning from nightlife, sex workers and mentally sick people who congregate in the city’s busy business districts after dark.

A recent investigation by Vision Group's Radio Rupiny revealed a troubling situation: Many backstreets in Gulu city are now littered with human faeces.

The most affected areas include the Library and Bus Park B, where the stench from the waste is overwhelming, attracting flies and contributing to unsanitary conditions.

George Okello, a resident of Koro-Abili in Omoro district, attributed the high rate of open defecation in Acholi to poverty.

"You cannot tell people to put up pit latrines yet they cannot afford a meal a day," Okello said.

According to the 2020 water ministry sector performance report, 8.8 million Ugandans are practising open defecation.

According to data from the World Health Organisation/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for water supply, sanitation and hygiene, Uganda's open defecation stands at 5% as of 2020, as opposed to the 14% as of 2000.

Health risks

Open defecation poses significant health risks, notably increasing the potential for cholera outbreaks if the situation is not addressed.

Defecating in the open, according to the World Health Organisation and Unicef, is an affront to dignity and risk to children’s nutrition and to community health. The elimination of open defecation is recognised as a top priority for improving health, nutrition, and productivity of developing country populations and is explicitly mentioned in SDG target 6.2.

Open defecation rates have been decreasing steadily. Open defecation rates have been decreasing steadily. Between 2000 and 2022, the number of people practising open defecation declined from 1.3 billion to 419 million, reducing by more than two-thirds. In 2022, there were still 36 countries with open defecation rates between 5% and 25%. In 13 countries, more than one in four people still practice open defecation.

In the Loro-Pece division, latrine coverage currently stands at 74.8 per cent, with slum areas experiencing the most severe lack of access to sanitation.