Interviewer instructions
The purpose of this question is to obtain a measure of the sanitation level of the household, since toilet facilities are important for disease control and health improvement. Below are some definitions for the terms used in the codes for Qs. 108.
Definitions of Toilet Facility Codes in Q. 104
Response Categories Definition
a) Flush/pour flush toilet A flush toilet uses a cistern or holding tank for flushing water and has a water seal, which is a U-shaped pipe, below the seat or squatting pan, that prevents the passage of flies and odors. A pour flush toilet uses a water seal, but unlike a flush toilet, a pour flush toilet uses water poured by hand for flushing (no cistern is used)
- to piped sewer system A system of sewer pipes (also called sewerage), that is designed to collect human excreta (feces and urine) and wastewater and remove them from the household environment. Sewerage systems consist of facilities for collection, pumping, treating and disposing of human excreta and wastewater
- to septic tank- An excreta collection device consisting of a watertight settling tank normally located underground, away from the house or toilet
- to pit latrine- A system that flushes excreta to a hole in the ground
- to somewhere else- A system in which the excreta is deposited in or nearby the household environment in a location other than a sewer, septic tank, or pit, e.g., excreta may be flushed to the street, yard/plot, drainage ditch or other location
b) Pit latrine Excreta is deposited without flushing, directly into a hole in the ground
ventilated improved pit latrine (VIP): A latrine ventilated by a pipe extending above the latrine roof. The open end of the vent pipe is covered with gauze mesh or fly-proof netting and the inside of the superstructure is kept dark
- pit latrine with slab: A latrine with a squatting slab, platform or seat firmly supported on all sides which is raised above the surrounding ground level to prevent surface water from entering the pit and for ease of cleaning
- pit latrine without slab/ open pit: A latrine without a squatting slab, platform or seat. An open pit is a rudimentary hole in the ground where excreta is collected.
c) Composting toilet A toilet into which excreta and carbon-rich material are combined (vegetable wastes, straw, grass, sawdust, ash) and special conditions maintained to produce inoffensive compost
d) Bucket toilet Involves the use of a bucket or other container for the retention of feces (and sometimes urine and anal cleaning material), which is periodically removed for treatment or disposal
e) Hanging toilet A toilet built over the sea, a river, or other body of water allowing excreta to drop directly into the water
