A decade of India’s transformative sanitation mission : Valley Vision

Ten years of the Swachh Bharat Mission, or SBM (It was launched on October 2, 2014), have been transformational for the people of India in more ways than one. When we think about sanitation, it is easy to reduce the conversation to just building toilets. But India’s journey toward improving sanitation has been about survival, dignity, empowerment, and prosperity. It has created a ripple effect that will impact the health and well-being of generations to come.

Led by the Prime Minister of India, the phenomenal SBM journey has transformed the lives of nearly 500 million people, nearly half of India’s population, helping them achieve Open Defecation Free status by providing access to safe toilets at home in less than a decade. As the Prime Minister of India said recently, “Swachh Bharat is the world’s largest and most successful people-led and people-driven public movement of this century.” It is a good practice model that India has shared with the world.

Children as agents of change

As a key partner of India’s Swachh Bharat Mission, UNICEF continues to be proud to be a part of the drive, reshaping lives in India and beyond. These are three key achievements of the SBM.

First, safe sanitation has saved lives. For children, having access to clean, safe toilets is not just a convenience. It directly impacts their health and their future. In an open defecation-free (ODF) environment, for example, there are fewer episodes of diarrhoea, which is still a leading cause of death in children under five, globally. A cleaner environment also brings down malnutrition among children. Beyond survival, safe sanitation and hygiene practices have helped children thrive and develop. When children are healthier, they go to school regularly, focus on learning, and have a better chance to grow up to their best potential.

It is a virtuous cycle: healthier children mean a thriving, more educated and productive population, and that means a brighter future for children and the country at large.

What makes India’s SBM even more compelling, is that children often are the strongest advocates for change. When children are taught the importance of washing their hands, using toilets, and managing waste, they do not keep this knowledge to themselves. They bring it home. They teach their parents and family members, friends and neighbours, helping to shift behaviours across generations. In many ways, children are the driving force behind this cultural shift, showing that behavioural change, starting at a young age, can create a lasting impact.

It has empowered women

Second, for women, particularly in rural areas, the lack of safe sanitation has always been more than just an inconvenience. It has been about safety, dignity, better health and the freedom to live without fear. Before the SBM, many women had no choice but to relieve themselves in the open, often in isolated areas, making them vulnerable. The construction of toilets has, for many, meant the end of that fear and the beginning of a life lived with dignity.

Women are not just passive beneficiaries of safe sanitation. They are also active leaders in promoting safe sanitation as they have themselves experienced its benefits. The SBM also brought programmes such as the ‘Rani Mistris’, where women are trained as masons, building the very toilets their communities need. This is not just about gaining a skill but also about gaining confidence, leadership, and the ability to transform the future of their communities. These women have moved on to take leadership roles in local governance, some even becoming village heads.

The movement has again proved that when you empower women to lead, the entire community benefits. These women are no longer on the sidelines. They are partners in the fight for better sanitation, better health, and a better life for everyone around them. The empowerment of women extends beyond toilets. It gives women the tools and the skills to build sustainable futures for themselves and their families.

It has led to sustainable practices

And third, when the conversation about sanitation expands, the story does not end with becoming ODF. Rather it is just the beginning of what is turning out to be a much larger, ongoing movement. India is now focusing on ODF Plus villages, which go beyond maintaining their open defecation-free status to address issues such as solid and liquid waste management. This includes everything from collecting and composting organic waste to managing plastic waste, which is a growing concern as India continues to urbanise. It is a major challenge. But it is also a huge opportunity to create sustainable practices that could serve as a model for the world. It is about changing behaviours, bringing a psychological shift in the minds of people that has also given millions of sanitation workers a sense of pride and dignity in the work they do, as well as empowering people for building a healthier, more sustainable future for a cleaner, safer, healthier and prosperous future for citizens.

Political will and leadership matter here too. At the national level, under the Prime Minister, and at the local level, with village heads, sustained leadership commitment has played a key role. It is also a people’s movement — communities are taking ownership of their own safe sanitation needs. For 75 years, UNICEF has been a crucial partner in India’s progress, especially in the sanitation journey. This stretches from supporting the government with Mark II handpumps, to a focus on handwashing, to the SBM and Jal Jeevan Mission, to, today, supporting the shift toward environmental sustainability through technical expertise, advocacy, and community-driven approaches. All these ensure that rural populations and children everywhere gain benefits.

India’s sanitation revolution is not just India’s achievement, it is a global one. It contributes to the progress in the global Sustainable Development Goals and the lessons learned here can be shared with the world. The country has made incredible progress, but the journey is far from over.

As India grows, so do the challenges surrounding sanitation, especially in the context of environmental sustainability. With the sustained commitment of the political leadership and its people, India could once again lead the way. UNICEF’s support to the Indian government and the people of India remains steadfast for achieving these goals #foreverychild, the UNICEF term for focussing on initiatives linked to children’s programmes.

Arjan De Wagt is Deputy Representative, UNICEF India