Sanitation configurations in Lilongwe: Everyday experiences on and off the grid

Cecilia Alda-Vidal, Alison L Browne, Mary Lawhon and Deljana Iossifova
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Cecilia Alda-Vidal: University of Manchester, UK
Alison L Browne: University of Manchester, UK
Mary Lawhon: University of Edinburgh, UK
Deljana Iossifova: University of Manchester, UK

Urban Studies, 2024, vol. 61, issue 9, 1773-1788

Abstract: Scholars have called for increased attention to the practices through which residents of southern cities create and use infrastructure. The failures and disruptions of many particular artefacts have meant that people often develop multiple ways to access water, electricity, or transportation, even if all of them have limitations. For sanitation, thinking through heterogeneous infrastructure configurations can help us to see connections between toilets, and the reasons for maintaining access to different types of toilets, given their different risks and benefits. In this paper, we focus on plots in Lilongwe with both indoor flush-toilets and backyard latrines, and the lived experiences of people as they navigate choices about the use of these toilets. The presence of on and off-grid toilets is rooted in colonial urban form, yet is perpetuated – and proliferates in new places – as residents face a number of constraints, including most recently recurrent water shortages due to droughts. We consider both how this configuration challenges official imaginaries of urban sanitation, and how it helps residents to address different risks and sanitation needs. Drawing on the experience of Lilongwe, we reflect on what can be learnt from this heterogeneous infrastructural configuration in terms of planning for more resilient water and sanitation services in Global South cities and beyond.

Keywords: everyday practices; heterogeneous infrastructure configurations; infrastructure; resilience; sanitation; urban political ecology; 日常实践; å¼‚æž„åŸºç¡€è®¾æ–½é… ç½®; 基础设施; å¤ åŽŸåŠ›; å «ç”Ÿ; 城市政治生 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:61:y:2024:i:9:p:1773-1788

DOI: 10.1177/00420980231217661

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