World Emptying Challenge

What is the World Emptying Challenge?

FSMA is proud to host and support the World Emptying Challenge in our conferences. Past FSM Conferences have acted as a “gathering place” for the Emptiers and their associations to interact and share knowledge and their stories.

For FSM6, the World Emptying Challenge has gone virtual! 

Emptying professionals from around the world are showcasing their daily work on (and in) the ground in short, “homemade” films – (made by emptiers themselves). Teams of emptiers have submitted their videos that show the various steps of their emptying process:

● PPE

● Emptying of the pit/septic tank

● Cleaning up

● Disposal/Reuse

● Teamwork

These videos are shared online, with the hope for greater sector engagement with emptiers. We believe that greater visibility is the path to bridging the gap between emptier professionals and the rest of the sector.

Purpose of the challenge

• Help elevate the profile and visibility of the pit latrine emptying profession

• Actively demonstrate the importance and value of the demanding work essential for maintaining healthy living environments

• Raise awareness of safe, effective and efficient FSM practices and techniques

• Instill a sense of recognition, motivation and empowerment in competitors

• Underline the need for more qualified male and female professionals in the field

• Recognition of the vital role of emptiers in city-wide inclusive sanitation (CWIS) 

• Recognition of the benefits of small capital investments to build better businesses. 

Vision

• Elevated employability of sanitation workers 

• More and diverse sanitation job opportunities

• Sanitation systems strengthened through a bottom-up approach that integrates skills and know-how of pit latrine emptiers

• Funding directed towards small capital investments to enable emptiers to build better businesses.