How Jhenaidah Transformed Its Sanitation System 🇧🇩
Jhenaidah, a city in southwestern Bangladesh with nearly 190,000 residents, once struggled with basic sanitation. Today, it stands as a national Mentor City — a model for the rest of the country to follow.
📍 The City Established in 1958, Jhenaidah spans 34.42 sq km. About 39% of its residents come from low-income communities, making affordable sanitation a critical need.
🚽 The Challenge Poor sanitation hit low-income households the hardest. Septic tanks and pits were overflowing, and unsafe manual emptying methods put workers and communities at risk.
✅ What Changed The municipality launched awareness campaigns, built community and public toilets, and introduced a modern Vacutug emptying service — with subsidised rates for poor households. A Fecal Sludge Treatment Plant (FSTP) now safely processes waste citywide, with a second plant planned.
A Public-Private Partnership (PPP) keeps services running efficiently while generating revenue for the city.
💡 Bold Firsts Jhenaidah introduced Bangladesh’s first-ever sanitation tax — raising around $400,000 USD over five years. It also developed a long-term Sanitation Action Plan and earned ISO certification for service quality.
👷 People at the Centre Sanitation workers received housing, training, safety equipment, and financial support — proving that good sanitation is about human dignity, not just infrastructure.
Built on equity, safety, sustainability, responsibility, and accountability — Jhenaidah is a city of inspiration. 🌟
📄 To learn more, please read the document on Jhenaidah Paurashava as a CWIS Mentor City.
🔗 [English] 🔗 [Bangla]
