A media briefing: AFRICA THE CHALLENGE OF SANITATION

Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), New Delhi, India with Media for Environment, Science, Health and Agriculture (MESHA)-Kenya and Kenya Water and Sanitation Civil Society Network 

A media briefing AFRICA THE CHALLENGE OF SANITATION August 15-17, 2018

Nairobi, Kenya 

Very soon, Africa would be overtaking India as the region with the world’s largest population that defecates in the open. The region is already struggling with another related problem: it has the lowest rate – among all continents -- of providing access to sanitation. Clearly, the planet cannot become open defecation-free unless regions like Africa and India become so. This would require more than just providing access to toilets – African countries and India need to ensure behavior change to make sanitation sustainable and reduce the disease burden and poverty.

New Delhi (India)-based think tank Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) – in association with Media for Environment, Science, Health and Agriculture (MESHA)-Kenya and Kenya Water and Sanitation Civil Society Network – invites African journalists to a media briefing on the subject. Journalists (including freelancers) working in Africa, writing on environment, health, water and sanitation, are eligible to apply. 

A special Africa issue of Down To Earth, the environment and development fortnightly magazine that CSE helps publish, will be released on this occasion. The issue would be focused on the subject of sanitation in Africa, and would capture the crisis, the burden, the cost and the strategy to meet this huge challenge. 

For more information, please write to

• Souparno Banerjee, The CSE Media Resource Centre, India, souparno@cseindia.org
• Parul Tewari, The CSE Media Resource Centre, India, parul@cseindia.org
• Daniel Aghan, MESHA, Kenya, aghan@meshakenya.org