DALLAS, Nov. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- As the
pandemic has unfolded, many people focused on access to essential
products such as toilet paper. Yet over 2 billion people – or 1 in
4 – around the world – continue to lack access to basic sanitation,
including a toilet. Additionally, 785 million – or 1 in 10 – do not
have clean water close to home.
Kimberly-Clark and several of its trusted brands, including
Andrex, Neve, Scott, Suave and Baby Soft, responded to the global
sanitation crisis and have engaged consumers through the 'Toilets
Change Lives' program over the last six years. Supported by the
Kimberly-Clark Foundation, the company launched the program in 2014
initially with its Andrex brand, and it has since provided critical
resources in 12 countries and impacted 5 million lives.
The United Nations General Assembly officially designated World
Toilet Day in 2013 to raise awareness and inspire efforts to bring
solutions to the more than 2 billion people who lack access to
basic sanitation. This crisis often leads to children dying from
preventable diseases, women lacking a safe place to relieve
themselves, or missing school and work because they are unable to
manage their periods.
"The need for access to clean water and sustainable sanitation
has never been more urgent," said Jenny
Lewis, Vice President of the Kimberly-Clark Foundation.
"While the sanitation crisis existed long before the pandemic, the
public health crisis combined with the impacts of climate change
have only magnified the issue and the need for solutions. There is
still a lot of work to do, and our Toilets Change Lives program is
helping to accelerate it."
According to the World Health Organization, climate change
exacerbates the risk of infectious disease by increasing the
existing pressure on clean water and sanitation systems.
Toilets Change Lives focuses on 10 countries in 2020
This year, the program provided resources in 10 countries,
including Bangladesh, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Peru and South
Africa, in partnership with Kimberly-Clark's customers as
well as NGOs including Water For People, WaterAid and Plan
International.
Kimberly-Clark and its Andrex brand have partnered since 2017
with WaterAid on an initiative known as 'Improving Community
Toilets to Increase Dignity and Public Health' to transform public
sanitation services through the construction and management of
inclusive public toilets across three cities in Bangladesh, which benefit pedestrians and
commuters – particularly those from low-income communities.
This year, the program completed five new public toilets in
Dhaka, Chattogram and Khulna as an expansion of the four toilet
blocks that were built during the first phase of the project
(April 2017 to March 2018). The nine public toilets in this
program have generated over 1.6 million uses since 2017, which is
more than double the projected impact.
Watch the story of Sanjida and her family in Bangladesh and learn more about the impact
that toilets provide for communities around the globe.
Creating new jobs in the sanitation economy
As part of its commitment to sustainable solutions to the global
sanitation crisis, Kimberly-Clark has supported the creation of new
business models across the sanitation economy.
In alignment with one of the program's objectives to create
sustainable new jobs for sanipreneurs, WaterAid coordinated
training for 26 local women across three cities in Bangladesh to oversee the operation and
maintenance of public toilets and ensure high standards of
cleanliness. These female employees increase the confidence of
other women and encourage them to use the toilets, changing the
perception that public toilets are unpleasant, unsafe and
unhygienic.
"We know that without the very basic human essentials such as
clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene, people can't stay
healthy and families become more vulnerable to disease. This
results in children missing out on education and parents often
becoming too ill to work, putting livelihoods at risk," said
Tim Wainwright, Chief Executive
of WaterAid UK.
"Through our initiative with Kimberly Clark, with support from
Andrex and their customers, our project was successful in
influencing local governments to realize the demand for public
sanitation services and improve public health in three major cities
in Bangladesh. As a result, the
Kimberly Clark program has become a model which is now widely
recognized and used in future sanitation planning. This initiative
has ignited an unprecedented systemic change in public toilet
facilities in Bangladesh, with a
particular focus on women and people with disabilities."
Wainwright added, "Together, we have created a program that will
continue to improve the dignity and enforce the sanitation rights
of the most marginalized within Bangladesh's densely populated cities,
creating long-lasting change."
Delivering Sanitation Solutions and Menstrual Hygiene
Education in South Africa
In South Africa, one of the
leading causes of illness and death for children is diarrhea
resulting from poor water quality and sanitation. In response,
Kimberly-Clark and WaterAid recently completed their first
sanitation program in the country. Together, they delivered
sanitation facilities to five schools by building four inclusive
toilet blocks and rehabilitating 19 standpipes to increase water
and sanitation access to 1,200 students and 5,000 community members
in the Vhembe District of Limpopo. In 2021, the program will expand
to another four schools to ensure that an additional 2,700 students
and two surrounding communities gain access to these vital
services.
The program also delivered menstrual hygiene education training
to teachers on Menstrual Hygiene Day in May
2019 at two schools, reaching students and staff with key
messages on menstrual hygiene management and raising awareness
about the many stigmas and taboos surrounding menstruation. In
addition, 44 male students received information about how they can
support their female peers. Taboos and lack of access to sanitation
makes it very challenging for young women to safely and effectively
manage their periods, which this program aims to address through
awareness-raising activities and sanitation access.
Making lives better across Latin
America
More than 80 million Latin Americans do not have access to at
least basic sanitation, and our Toilets Change Lives program
provided critical sanitation-related resources this year in
numerous countries, including Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia and Brazil. Since its launch in Latin America in 2015, the Toilets Change
Lives program – with support from our Scott, Suave and Neve brands
– has impacted over 270,000 lives in the region.
Our partnership with Plan International through Toilets Change
Lives ensured that families in the Andean highlands community in
Ecuador have access to essential
hygiene products. The program recently delivered 120 hygiene kits
filled with Scott brand toilet paper, soap, sanitary pads and more
to families in the community to help prevent disease and ensure
safer living conditions.
"Our work with Toilets Change Lives plays a critical role in
delivering on our global goal of advancing the well-being of 1
billion people in underserved communities around the globe by 2030.
This ambition supports three of the UN's Sustainable Development
Goals, including improving access to clean water and sanitation,"
said Gonzalo Uribe, President of
Kimberly-Clark's Latin America Consumer Business.
"Installing a toilet in a community truly changes the life
trajectory of everyone in that community for generations to come.
It enables children to attend school and continue their education,
obtain living wage jobs, support healthy, thriving families of
their own, and ultimately strengthen their communities. It all
comes full circle," said Uribe.
See how our Neve brand is making a difference across
Brazil.
Kimberly-Clark and Toilet Board Coalition Launch Female-Focused
Innovation Lab
Last month, Kimberly-Clark and its Kotex brand launched the
Women in the Sanitation Economy Innovation Lab in partnership with
the Toilet Board Coalition, which it co-founded in 2014. This
initiative will cultivate and catalyze early stage ideas and
businesses within the sanitation economy that are either women-led
and/or women's health-focused.
"As a sanitation entrepreneur myself who works at the
intersection of innovation and inclusion, I was thrilled for the
opportunity to launch the Women in the Sanitation Economy program
with Kimberly-Clark as our first Innovation Lab at the Toilet Board
Coalition," said Jasmine Burton,
Sanitation Economy Accelerator and Innovation Lab Manager at the
Toilet Board Coalition. "I am looking forward to continued
learnings and growth with this inspiring team from Kimberly-Clark
as we grow and evolve the program and its impact over time."
The Innovation Lab initiative features five women-led businesses
from Kenya, the U.S. and the UK
and expands the reach of the Toilet Board Coalition's current
Sanitation Economy Accelerator Program. Kimberly-Clark is providing
mentorship from its employees around the globe to support these
female entrepreneurs as they aim to tackle some of their unique
business challenges and positively contribute to some of the
world's most pressing sanitation issues. The Innovation Lab started
in October 2020 and will run through
April 2021.
Kimberly-Clark's 2030 Ambitions
In July 2020, Kimberly-Clark
announced its 2030 sustainability strategy and goals, aimed at
addressing the social and environmental challenges of the next
decade with commitments to improve the lives and well-being of 1
billion people in underserved communities around the world with the
smallest environmental footprint.
This ambition will create positive social outcomes by creating
shared value in areas that support three of the UN's Sustainable
Development Goals (SDG):
- Caring for the health and well-being of people at all stages of
life (SDG 3);
- Challenging stigmas and championing the progress of women
everywhere (SDG 5); and
- Championing a world where all enjoy access to clean water and
sanitation (SDG 6).
Kimberly-Clark understands that a strong and enduring focus
on the smallest environmental footprint is just as essential
to helping people live a better life, and the company also is
focused on the areas where it can make the biggest difference –
climate, forests, water and plastics.
For more information about Kimberly-Clark's 2030 ambitions,
visit kimberly-clark.com/sustainability.
About Kimberly-Clark
Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) and its trusted brands are an
indispensable part of life for people in more than 175 countries.
Fueled by ingenuity, creativity, and an understanding of people's
most essential needs, we create products that help individuals
experience more of what's important to them. Our portfolio of
brands, including Huggies, Kleenex, Scott, Kotex, Cottonelle,
Poise, Depend, Andrex, Pull-Ups, GoodNites, Intimus, Neve,
Plenitud, Viva and WypAll, hold the No. 1 or No. 2 share position
in 80 countries. We use sustainable practices that support a
healthy planet, build stronger communities, and ensure our business
thrives for decades to come. To keep up with the latest news and to
learn more about the company's 148-year history of innovation,
visit kimberly-clark.com.
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