WASH Central and Eastern Europe, West and Central Asia

During the Soviet time, most of the schools used to have flush toilets, though not all of them. They were using a septic pit that was periodically emptied. Due to aging and poor maintenance, most of these systems deteriorated and fail to serve. Toilets on septic pits were built in some schools (incl. multiple toilets: a line of toilet holes in a large “lift-toilet”).

The hospitals and polyclinics are public buildings, visited by citizens, and they need to have public toilets to ensure proper hygiene. They also serve as an example of adequately maintained facilities for the visitors.

Private sanitation systems

Promotion of household toilets has been done for years and all village homes have their own toilets; though the quality differs significantly from one place to another.

Flush toilets
This system depends fully on regular water supply. These toilets discharge in septic pits in villages as there are no sewers there. In case of intermittent water service, these toilets become very fast unhygienic and non-usable. Water supply in villages might stop because of water deficiency in the system or due to freezing.

Simple pit latrines on septic pits
These are widely used in rural Kyrgyzstan. Every home would have a pit latrine as a major sanitation facility. The standard pit latrine prevents direct access to feces; it is built to infiltrate in ground. Kyrgyz authorities claim that there are no parasites just 10 m away from the pit latrine, and it is safe for groundwater. At the same time, international research proves that pit latrines endanger ground water quality and often pollute drinking water sources. Such pollution is responsible for a number of water borne and parasitic diseases. The authorities though admit that pit latrines are not attractive due to offensive smell and abundance of flies.

Ventilated pit latrines (VIP)
VIP latrines are improved form of pit latrine. Kyrgyz authorities promote VIP latrines because according to them they avoid the main problems linked to simple pit latrines: flies and offensive smell. At the same time, the threat to ground and drinking water is as high as with the pit latrines. The main difference between these two forms of toilets is that the VIP latrine is built with a ventilation system: a pile ventilating the pit under the toilet slab and bringing the exhaust high above the roof of the VIP latrine. Drawing bellow illustrates the construction elements of the VIP latrine. This toilet has simple construction requirements and is cheap.

Ventilated Pit Latrine (VIP)

Low flush pit latrine with bucket flush
In this toilet, the feces are deposited in the slab/toilet seat, and after this flush sway with water from bucket. The septic pit is usually some distance away from the toilet and a pipe is used to discharge the excrements in the pit.

The advantage of these toilets according to Kyrgyz authorities is that there are no offensive smell and flies; the main disadvantage is that they depend fully on regular water supply. In long cold winters, these systems freeze in the way they are built in Kyrgyzstan.


VIP Latrine		Traditional Toilet

Kyrgyz authorities and sanitation experts believe that VIP latrine best meets the needs and suits the local conditions in Kyrgyz villages. These are promoted for schools, village hospitals and households within the framework of a number of governmental projects funded by international donors or loans.

NGO community is promoting dry urine-diverting (UDD) toilets as alternative for the usual pit latrines and the VIP latrines promoted by the government. The advantage of UDD toilets is that they do not attract flies, do not create offensive smell; they also do not pollute ground and drinking water. They do not need regular water supply.

UDD toilets promote healthy environment. Of course, people can benefit from improved water supply system only in case of simultaneous improvement of hygienic behavior and sanitation conditions. Many intestinal and parasitic infections can appear not only due to consumption of contaminated drinking water, but also through dirty hands and fecal and oral transmission way. Reduction of parasitic re-infection rate among primary school children will indicate behaviour change after information on hygiene and sanitation has been received.

Certain rate of behaviour change will influence on prevalence of the disease before and after intervention.

Data from laboratory examination of children

Villages where examination was taken			Lambliasis		Enterobiasis
Oblast	N. of villages	N. of first formers	N. of cases	%	N. of cases	%
Osh	6	201	76	38%	150	75%
Osh		178	33	19%	36	20%
Batken	6	232	137	59%	182	78%
Batken		215	42	20%	83	39%
Jalalabat	6	206	96	47%	160	78%
Jalalabat		188	39	21%	33	18%
Chui	6	168	78	46%	122	73%
Chui		229	33	14%	28	12%
Total:	24	807	387	48%	614	76%
Total:	24	810	147	18%	180	22%

Governmental project implemented by the Republican Centre for Health Promotion, Ministry of Health of the Kyrgyz Republic - Rural Hygiene and Sanitation Project Kyrgyzstan, implemented in collaboration with WS Atkins International Limited Epso, has published the following info about hygiene behavior of village population in Kyrgyzstan: