Abstract:
The Sustainable Development Goals will challenge low- and middle-income settings to
look at new approaches for rural sanitation. In 2013, Mzuzu University, in partnership with United
Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Malawi, started a low-cost latrine program in rural areas using
the corbelled latrine design supported by locally owned sustainable businesses. The objective of
this work was to trace customers (early household adopters) and non-customers through field
observations and interviews in 15 districts of Malawi. The research team spent 193 personnel work
days in data collection and found 21 households as adopters in 7 districts. Most respondents had
a preference with regard to the design of the sanitation facility they would like to use. Although
sharing of sanitation facilities was common, the corbelled latrine is promoted as a single household
pit latrine design. Unfortunately, 8% (23/304) of non-adopters responded they practiced open
defecation. Households were satisfied with the corbelled latrine design, and no latrine was found
to have collapsed during field visits. To promote the corbelled latrine in Malawi, the following are
recommended: (1) education of frontline government extension workers towards non-subsidized
household latrines; (2) identification of rural low-income households as the best target for potential
adopters; and (3) linkage of low-cost sanitation technologies to community mobilization campaigns
led by the government, such as Community Led Total Sanitation.
