Sanitary Conclusions: Foregrounding African Voices

Throughout my blog, I have tried to provide clarity on two identified themes. These are the translation of sanitation between rural and urban environments, and 'The Unmentionable'. Following their identification in my first post, the former held particular presence in Ecosan discussions, the latter in Software and WTD considerations, and then their interconnectedness was made clear by my interest in CTLS and PGISM. 

Only when I reflected upon all these posts for the development of my GBV exploration, however, alongside the lessons I learnt in writing that post, did I realise how each entry spoke to an additional, fundamental conclusion. Simply put, this is that there is always a crucial need to privilege African voices in the discourse concerning African experiences. Thus far, this conclusion has not been made explicit enough throughout my writing, hiding in plain sight where other lessons have been noted. However, I hope that by highlighting its rightful place in this post, future bloggers will know where to BEGIN their work, rather than end.

Of course now, frustratingly, I see how at the beginning of my blog I fell into asking “Where could my own voice be found?”, as if this might uncover solutions to the thematic problems. Reflecting back on the topics explored, however, it’s undeniable that the solutions always remained anchored around the discovery and amplification of African voices, in all their various forms. Specifically, solutions, such as PGISM, stood out the most when providing platforms and frameworks for different voices to be heard, while the most detrimental problems, such as GBV, persisted due to silence. 

At this blog’s conclusion, therefore, I realise that I should have been asking questions early on that prioritized these voices and challenged the colonial legacies present in sanitation literature. For example:

“Where and how can we create safety and support networks for disadvantaged African voices, so we can bring their honest experiences into the light?” (Dietvorst, 2020) 

“Where and how can we combine the insights of African communities to better balance the knowledge production in the WaSH sector”? (Luseka, 2020)

The ‘Where’, of course, should be all communities in Africa. However, suggesting a starting point for ‘How’, future bloggers might consider such works as the IRC’s decolonisation of the WASH sector, alongside Luseka’s encouragement to expand SDG-6 further to include the “promotion of peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development” (SDG-16). By doing so, discourse on Africa’s water and sanitary solutions might better recognise the necessity and uniqueness of local voices, offering greater opportunities for more equitable, holistic collaboration (Dietvorst, 2020). Such collaboration is what blogs such as this strive for, as just small pieces of the knowledge sharing network.

So, when concluding the challenges and solutions explored throughout my blog, I feel I must return to the word association I asked in the beginning - “What does it mean to you when I say “Water, Sanitation and Africa”? My answer back then - “opportunities being missed”. My answer now - “foregrounding African voices”. And with that simple change, the path ahead seems clearer!

I hope you take the time to reflect upon your own journey of perspectives whenever you can and thank you for being part of this sanitation exploration.

I hope you found it as fascinating as I did!