November 19 is "World Toilet Day". To expand its impact on society, innovation and global strategy partnerships will be strengthened.

NEW.

LIXIL Corporation (hereinafter referred to as LIXIL) is addressing one of the pillars of its impact strategy, "solving global sanitation issues." Ahead of "World Toilet Day" on November 19, announcements will be made regarding the major initiatives and achievements that have been promoted towards resolving this issue.
Currently, around 3.5 billion people worldwide lack access to safely managed sanitation facilities (toilets)¹, and about 2 billion live in environments where they do not have basic handwashing facilities at home. LIXIL is actively promoting efforts with the goal of "improving the sanitation environment for 0.1 billion people by 2025" to tackle "global sanitation challenges," and has contributed to improving the sanitation environment for approximately 68 million people in 45 countries so far.

Expanding impact through partnerships.
LIXIL has built a close collaboration system with various influential organizations, from international agencies such as the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to local businesses and organizations in each region, to accelerate efforts toward solving global sanitation challenges and expanding impact.
"MAKE A SPLASH!" Global Partnership with UNICEF.
Through the global partnership "MAKE A SPLASH!" with UNICEF, efforts have been promoted to provide affordable and safe sanitation facilities in six countries: Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, and Tanzania. Over the past five years of partnership activities, 12.7 million people have gained access to basic sanitation facilities², contributing to improvements in sanitation conditions.
Moreover, through previous efforts, sustainable sanitation market development has been promoted, gaining valuable insights in the five key areas of supply, demand, financing, environmental enhancement, and sales. LIXIL and UNICEF aim to further expand impact by continuing to focus on each area with a comprehensive approach to provide safe sanitation environments to even more people. This partnership between LIXIL and UNICEF will be extended until 2027, further promoting market-based approaches to provide accessible sanitation facilities to people in regions of Asia and Africa where improvements in sanitation conditions are most needed.

Partnership for Better Living between USAID and LIXIL.
In 2022, LIXIL and USAID launched "Partnership for Better Living: Affordable, Accessible, Adaptable Sanitation Solutions (PBL)" to target regions and people in developing countries where sanitation services are lacking. The focus is on expanding the market for affordable sanitation products and strengthening the supply chain, aiming to promote long-term health improvement and socio-economic development for people.
Utilizing the extensive network of USAID and the expertise in design and innovation of LIXIL’s social business "SATO" brand, efforts have been made with the goal of providing sustainable access to sanitary environments to over 2 million people by 2026. Currently, that goal has been significantly surpassed with improvements to sanitary conditions already realized for more than 3 million people.
Recent activities of the partnership have expanded to Madagascar, Senegal, and the Philippines. In each country, to ensure the supply of SATO products, a network of local retailers, dealers, and construction contractors is being built through local licensed partners (importers and distributors), thus creating a reliable and sustainable supply chain that supports sanitary environments. Furthermore, starting in 2024, this activity will also expand to Liberia and Guatemala.

SATO Business: Accelerating Collaboration.
Traditionally, the SATO business has provided toilet systems and handwashing solutions for developing countries primarily targeting households. By expanding collaboration with various partners, including public institutions, private enterprises, NGOs, and local partners, it has become possible to promote the installation of SATO products in facilities and locations frequently used by local people, such as schools, medical care facilities, public toilets, and refugee camps, thereby providing sanitary toilets and handwashing facilities to more people.
Additionally, the SATO business has been implementing the "School Toilet Improvement Program (STEP)" since 2020, aimed at preventing the decline in attendance rates caused by inadequate sanitary facilities at schools. This program began in Africa and has since expanded to six countries, including Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Rwanda, Nigeria, and Bangladesh, allowing approximately 69,000 children to access sanitary toilets. Furthermore, to support the creation of an environment where children can study safely, the e-commerce platform "SATO Shop" has been established. The shop sells T-shirts and other items in collaboration with local artists active in Asia and Africa, utilizing all proceeds to further fund the improvement of sanitary environments at schools.

Development of Future Toilets.
LIXIL has strengthened its efforts to expand sustainable sanitary solution offerings through its first public sector engagement team, "LIXIL Public Partners (LPP)", which aligns with the theme of "Toilets - A Place for Peace" for World Toilet Day 2024.
LIXIL is strengthening its collaboration with Georgia Institute of Technology to provide groundbreaking solutions for regions lacking sufficient sanitary infrastructure. In March of this year, a co-development team led by Georgia Tech was selected as the first commercial licensing partner for the technology of the "Generation II Reinvented Toilet (G2RT)". The G2RT is an independent toilet system that processes waste on-site without relying on traditional sewerage or septic systems. Equipped with the latest technology, the liquid portion of the waste is purified and reused, while the solid portion eliminates harmful pathogens and can be converted into compost.
LIXIL will invest resources toward the practical application of this innovative technology, aiming for use in public facilities and general households. This G2RT project aims to achieve affordable toilet products for all by improving product safety, reliability, durability, and establishing efficient energy consumption technologies while reducing manufacturing costs. Furthermore, efforts will be focused on advocating for the necessary legal frameworks and regulations required for market launch and dissemination.

LIXIL's President and CEO, Kinya Seto, commented as follows.
"As outlined in Goal 6 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), ensuring equal access to safe water and toilets for people around the world is becoming more important than ever, while progress toward achieving the SDGs by 2030 has been unsatisfactory. LIXIL is actively working to solve this globally intensifying sanitation issue and has contributed to improving sanitary conditions by promoting product development and innovation, as well as establishing strategic partnerships with various partners."
LIXIL's award-winning social business "SATO" has expanded since entering Bangladesh in 2013, growing through collaborations that transcend public and private boundaries and enhancing its product portfolio to meet diverse needs. Additionally, it has deepened collaboration with Georgia Tech, taking the first steps toward the practical application of an independent toilet system called 'G2RT,' which does not rely on traditional sanitation infrastructure. It is expected to have a significant impact on solving sanitation challenges worldwide by realizing this innovative toilet system.
LIXIL has set an ambitious goal to improve the sanitary environment for 0.1 billion people and enhance quality of life by 2025, and will strengthen its initiatives based on past progress.
Please see here for the latest initiatives in Bangladesh.
For details on LIXIL's impact strategy, please see here.

1 Safely managed sanitation facilities (toilets) refer to facilities that are separated to prevent contact with other waste or are safely and hygienically treated in another location. They are not shared with other households and indicate improved sanitation facilities (toilets).
Basic sanitation facilities (toilets) refer to those that are not shared with other households and where excreta is not hygienically managed, representing improved sanitation facilities (toilets). If excreta from improved sanitation facilities (toilets) is not hygienically managed, then the people using those facilities are considered users of basic sanitation facilities (toilets).
(Source)
This is the outcome obtained through all activities of this partnership, specifically the number of people who gained access to basic sanitation facilities and sanitation products as a result of activities undertaken in USAID's FYE2023 and FYE2024.