Understanding what is there and what is needed is essential to address service delivery gaps and to ensure improved and effective public toilet access across the city in the long term. Planners often lack reliable, up-to-date and complete data sets. Cities need to facilitate and ensure comprehensive and regular data collection, an effective data management system as well as strong institutions and regulatory systems to plan, monitor and control effective public toilet management.

Focal areas

• Data Collection - Assess what is there and needed (analytical framework): Cities are advised to assess the pillars of the PTM process to identify what there is and what is needed in order to optimize the PT management and service provision: (Pillars 1 and 2) Assessment of physical access and service quality (public toilet profile; supply, service and demand analysis; mapping public sanitation gaps and the need for action); (Pillar 3) engagement and contract review (stakeholder mapping, service indicators and charter); (Pillar 4) assessment of the market and institutional readiness (stakeholder assessment).

• Data Management - Online Asset inventory: An asset data management system provides an overview of the status of the sanitation infrastructure and service delivery. It improves data dissemination (in a map-based platform) across management structures and serves as a planning, monitoring and effective decision-making tool.

Toolbox

A collection of tools and reference material for the first step of the Public Toilet Management process and its focal areas is available for download here.