The Maintenance of Our Toilets

At The Good Roll, we don’t just roll out toilet paper, we also roll out big projects! We invest 50% of our net profit in building clean toilets in Ghana. We are mega proud, because we have improved the lives of approximately 178,400 people with more than 230 new toilet units in 14 schools. Oh, and we have also saved more than 35,818 trees!

But building toilets is only part of our foundation’s work; these facilities also need to be maintained regularly to ensure they continue to have the greatest possible positive impact. The Good Roll Foundation has created a detailed maintenance plan for this, which is implemented periodically to keep the toilets in tip-top toilettastic condition. In this blog, we’ll dive deeper into our maintenance plan and explain how it contributes to our mission of safe and clean toilets for all.

A Focus on Sustainability and Culture

Maintaining these toilets involves a lot, especially since the circumstances in the Netherlands and Ghana are very different. We want to achieve more than just installing toilets; we strive for them to have a sustainable positive impact. That is why we teach local communities and school staff the importance of good maintenance. We provide them with the necessary knowledge and tools to carry out this maintenance independently. Furthermore, we explain how they can quickly report problems that they cannot solve themselves. This way, our foundation can intervene immediately to prevent small problems from becoming bigger. All this guarantees that the toilets remain reliable and safe for everyone who uses them, and ensures that they continue to have a long-term impact.

The Role of Education

An important part of our project is that we regularly visit schools to see what the impact of what we do is. We ask important questions to check whether our new toilets are really making a difference: are more girls coming to school? Do students and teachers feel safer using the toilets? And are the toilets kept clean so that they don’t spread disease? This feedback is really important to us. It helps us to keep improving and ensure that our facilities have a lasting impact.

Important Aspects of Our Maintenance Plan

Our foundation's maintenance plan focuses on three main aspects:

1. Care for Technology and Hygiene: We make sure that everything is in perfect order at every toilet. That means: enough toilet paper, soap, sanitary towels in the kiosk, a small shop that we have at the toilets and other cleaning supplies that are always ready. But we look further than just hygiene. Does the lock still work properly? Is the water still running through the tap, or are there leaks somewhere? And does everything flow smoothly, without blockages? All of this is super important to us, because it ensures that everyone, both students and staff, is safe and satisfied. They should not have to worry when they use the toilet.

2. Biodigesters: Bio whattt? We can hear you thinking! Let us explain! These are smart devices that we have installed in all our toilets. They work a bit like superheroes: they transform your waste into useful products such as fertilizer for plants, fuel and even building materials such as bricks. This miracle is made possible by our partner SafiSana. We keep a close eye on these biodigesters and check them regularly to make sure they continue to function perfectly. The great thing about biodigesters is that they help us to waste almost nothing. Even human waste can yield something good! In this way, every visit to the toilet contributes to a more sustainable world.

3. Training and Responsiveness: We teach the cleaning crews and people at school how to spot small things that are not right and tell us right away if something big is going on. That way we can work together to make sure everything is always working, keeps working and stays safe. This is our way of always being one step ahead in maintaining our toilets.

Expansion and Cooperation

As we reflect on our foundation’s successes, we also look ahead to expanding our impact. This year, we plan to support an additional 10 schools and are continually seeking partners and local organizations in Ghana to support our mission of WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) projects. The Good Roll Foundation’s commitment goes beyond building toilets; it’s about building a foundation for better health, education and opportunity.