science

Improved sanitation

Improved sanitation is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Improved sanitation rather than just read about it. In short: Improved sanitation (related to but distinct from a "safely managed sanitation service") is a term used to categorize types of sanitation for monitoring purposes. It refers to the management of human feces at the household level.

Key takeaways

Improved sanitation belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Improved sanitation to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Improved sanitation from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Improved sanitation (related to but distinct from a "safely managed sanitation service") is a term used to categorize types of sanitation for monitoring purposes. It refers to the management of human feces at the household level. The term was coined by the Joint Monitoring Program (JMP) for Water Supply and Sanitation of UNICEF and WHO in 2002 to help monitor the progress towards Goal Number 7 of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The opposite of "improved sanitation" has been termed "unimproved sanitation" in the JMP definitions. The same terms are used to monitor progress towards Sustainable Development Goal 6 (Target 6.2, Indicator 6.2.1) from 2015 onwards. Here, they are a component of the definition for "safely managed sanitation service". The Joint Monitoring Program (JMP) for Water Supply and Sanitation has been publishing updates on the global sanitation situation on an annual basis. For example, in 2015 it was reported that 68% of the world's population had access to improved sanitation. In 2015 this goal was replaced by Sustainable Development Goal 6, in which Target 6.2 states: "By 2030, achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations." Indicator 6.2.1 is the "Proportion of population using (a) safely managed sanitation services and (b) a handwashing facility with soap and water".

Definitions

Share of rural population with improved sanitation facilities in 2022

During SDG period (2015 to 2030) In 2017, the JMP defined a new term: "basic sanitation service". This is defined as the use of improved sanitation facilities that are not shared with other households. A lower level of service is now called "limited sanitation service" which refers to the use of improved sanitation facilities that are shared between two or more households. A higher level of service is called "safely managed sanitation". This is basic sanitation service where excreta is safely disposed of in situ or transported and treated offsite. The definition of improved sanitation facilities is: Those facilities designed to hygienically separate excreta from human contact. The ladder of sanitation services includes (from lowest to highest): open defecation, unimproved, limited, basic, safely managed.

During MDG period (2000 to 2015) An improved sanitation facility is defined as one that hygienically separates human excreta from human contact. It is not necessarily identical with sustainable sanitation. The opposite of "improved sanitation" has been termed "unimproved sanitation" in the JMP definitions. To allow for international comparability of estimates for monitoring the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the Joint Monitoring Program (JMP) for Water Supply and Sanitation defines "improved" sanitation as the following kind of toilets:

Flush toilet Connection to a piped sewer system Connection to a septic system Flush / pour-flush to a pit latrine Pit latrine with slab Ventilated improved pit latrine (abbreviated as VIP latrine) Composting toilet Sanitation facilities that are not considered as "improved" (also called "unimproved") are:

Public or shared latrine (meaning a toilet that is used by more than one household) Flush/pour flush to elsewhere (not into a pit, septic tank, or sewer) Pit latrine without slab Bucket latrines Hanging toilet / latrine No facilities / bush / field/ flying toilets (open defecation) Whilst "shared" toilets are not counted as improved sanitation, data about usage of shared toilets is nevertheless reported in the annual progress reports of the JMP.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Improved sanitation

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Improved sanitation claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Improved sanitation before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Improved sanitation ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Improved sanitation

In research: Improved sanitation appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Improved sanitation in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Improved sanitation is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Sanitation, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Improved sanitation outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Improved sanitation in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Improved sanitation means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Improved sanitation out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Improved sanitation in simple terms?

Why does Improved sanitation matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Improved sanitation?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Improved sanitation.