Mobile toilets in Addis Ababa 

"Clean and green the environment, create jobs and mobilize the local community."

WaterAid in Ethiopia’s local partner organization Gashe Abera Molla Association, which was founded on the above three principles, started a movement that has now led to the creation of mobile toilets in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.

The founder of Gashe Abera Molla Association, Sileshi Demissie, is an Ethiopian expatriate, who returned to the city after 20 years as a successful singer in the USA and decided to address the social and environmental problems that plagued his home city.  He set up the new organization and named it after a character in his songs - Gashe Abera, the old man who takes care of his local community. 

There is a big difference between the life I was living before and thelife I have now.  Before, I was homeless and didn't have an income tosupport myself.  Now, with the toilet I have an income.

Channeling his artistic talents in a different way, Sileshi visited local schools and made use of music, dance, poetry, drama and paintings to encourage 13,000 students to examine the city’s garbage and pollution problems and think about ways in which they could change the situation.

Inspired by Sileshi, the students went home and told their families, who then told their friends.  Thus as public awareness spread through word of mouth, the first phase of the project began.

Community demand

Sileshi and his team of volunteers started cleaning up polluted wastelands and transforming them into urban parks.  Despite community led cleanup efforts, public urination continued to be a major problem.

In Ethiopia only 15% of the population are reported to have adequate sanitation, so it is no surprise that people living in deprived urban districts lack access to latrines.

"Give us toilets and we will use them," the community replied when asked why there was still urine in the new greened areas.  In response Sileshi and his team came up with a novel approach - mobile toilets and kiosks that can be set up on the street.

The team approached WaterAid for funding and support, and soon after a partnership was formed, the first set of latrines were set up in the city.

The idea behind the mobile toilets is simple.  An area with a problem of public urination has a clear need for a public toilet. Thus setting up a toilet and charging users a small fee ensures a clean environment and also provides jobs for young homeless people who can act as toilet attendants.

The toilets are emptied regularly by vacuum trucks, and while most remain stationary in designated areas where they attract regular users, they can be moved to other areas where they are needed, hence the term 'mobile toilets'.

Earning a livelihood

In addition to collecting fees from the toilet users, the attendants also make money from the sale of goods from small kiosks, which are attached to the side of the metal toilets.

"When I came to Addis Ababa I had no work and was living on the street" explains Eskender Tadesse, one of the homeless youths involved in the program.

"Then I got involved with helping to clean and green the area.  Then, when this part was finished I started with the mobile toilet.

"There is a big difference between the life I was living before and the life I have now.  Before, I was homeless and I didn't have an income to support myself.  Now, with the toilet I have an income and am saving 50birr ($6.50) a month."

While the projects provide people like Eskender with a vital source of income, the attendants also clearly feel a sense of responsibility regarding the environmental aspects of the projects, recognizing that a clean environment will also attract more customers to their stalls.

Looking forward

The mobile toilet scheme is in its early phase, and WaterAid in Ethiopia and Gashe Abera Molle Association are currently exploring ways in which more female toilet users can be attracted.  They are also looking at alternative construction materials for the toilets and are working on making the toilets financially sustainable so that the attendants can pay for the vacuum trucks.

Initial signs are positive and the program shows great potential to not only benefit people like Eskender, but also the other residents of Addis Ababa.  A regular mobile toilet customer, Bizhayu, remarked: “It is very important to have mobile toilets, but not just here, we need them all over the city to keep the environment clean.  They are very important for youths to get jobs in the city too.”