The simple existence of a toilet is no longer considered an adequate outcome, and collective behaviour change reflected in a community’s ODF status is being adopted as the key indicator for sanitation programmes.
Monitoring, verification and certification are essential for ensuring the success and sustainability of community-led total sanitation (CLTS) efforts. Monitoring assesses and documents progress towards and the sustainability of open defecation free (ODF) status. Verification and certification provide a goal for communities and help implementing agencies and governments to ensure consistency and reliability of desired outcomes.
This Learning Brief considers the issues and challenges that are emerging around monitoring, verification and certification as CLTS is being used at scale. While there has been progress, significant gaps in practice still remain. These would benefit from further innovation and lesson learning. This document complements a longer report, Keeping Track: CLTS Monitoring, Certification and Verification, accessible at www.communityledtotalsanitation.org/resource/keepingtrack-clts-monitoring-certification-and-verification