Tackling challenges of pit latrine emptying in urban slums
Louise Couder (Director, External Relations) and Sheila Kibuthu (Assistant Manager, Communications) at Sanergy, a sanitation service provider in Kenya, reflect on the results and drivers of success of a new pit emptying project, aimed at ensuring the safe disposal of waste from urban communities. Kenya’s cities are growing rapidly....
Engineering solutions to optimize Black Soldier Fly production
Denis Ruto joined Sanergy’s Black Soldier Fly team earlier this year as part of the Sanergy Fellows Program. He has since transitioned to a full-time position. Below, he shares his experience working on Sanergy’s Black Soldier Fly project. Last year, Sanergy’s Godwin Ruto and a group of engineers came to Nairobi University...
No more full pits! – Introducing ‘Makao Bora’, the pit-emptying site
In Kenyan slums, pit latrines make up 80% of sanitation facilities. When these pit latrines fill up, digging a new pit is not an option; space is a luxury in the densely populated slums. Users are usually faced with the difficult task of having their pit emptied. Exhauster services are...
The SFD – A New Way Of Visualizing Excreta Management In Nairobi City
Since May 2017, Sanergy has been working with the Ministry of Health, City County of Nairobi and the African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) in a mapping exercise to develop Nairobi’s first comprehensive ‘Shit Flow Diagram (SFD)’. The SFD is a toolkit developed by the World Bank and...
Sanergy at World Water Week: A Recap
Last month, Sanergy participated in the World Water Week. The World Water Week is an annual global event that brings together leaders and experts in the WASH sector to exchange ideas, experiences and shape sustainable solutions to global water and sanitation challenges. Participation in forums such as the World Water...
Digital mapping – our new way to reach everyone, everywhere with safe sanitation
One of the biggest impacts of rapid urbanization in cities today is the buildup of crowded slums. In Nairobi for example, out of 3.1 million dwellers, 2.5 million of them live in slums such as Mukuru, which covers 525 acres and has a population of more than 500,000 people. In...
Developing Nextgen #Socent Leaders
The Sanergy Fellows Program provides professionals from around the globe with an opportunity to share their talent and skills to help tackle one of the greatest social challenges of our time: the provision of total hygienic sanitation for residents of informal settlements. Since its inception in 2011, Sanergy has welcomed...
The SFD – A New Way Of Visualizing Excreta Management In Nairobi City
The unveiling of the Shit Flow Diagram Since May 2017, Sanergy has been working with the Ministry of Health, City County of Nairobi and the African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) in a mapping exercise to develop Nairobi’s first comprehensive ‘Shit Flow Diagram (SFD)’. The SFD is...
Teammate Spotlight: Benedict Muli
This year marks Benedict Muli’s fifth anniversary at Sanergy as a Sales Associate. Every day, he holds conversations with residents of Mukuru slum and encourages them to invest in Fresh Life Toilets. Why? “Mukuru has been my home for over a decade, and I want a better life for...
“Majority of us don’t have access to flush toilets.” – Samson Ongari, Mukuru resident.
Samson Ongari, a landlord in Mukuru slum, has installed one Fresh Life Toilet for 18 households in his residential plot. Landlords like Samson who have invested in Fresh Life Toilets for their tenants have low tenancy turnover rates, and therefore earn consistent incomes from their rental units. He shares...