Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Sustainability and the Environment Mr Baey Yam Keng, launched the National Environment Agency’s (NEA) Clean Public Toilets Campaign 2023 today, together with the Public Hygiene Council (PHC), Restroom Association Singapore (RAS), and Singapore Kindness Movement (SKM).
2 The Clean Public Toilets Campaign 2023 sees continued strong support from partners PHC, RAS and SKM, who are joining NEA to promote the responsible use of public toilets. This year’s campaign, which is themed “Are you nice when no one’s around? Do it right for everyone”, appeals to the concept of social consciousness and encourages the socially desirable actions of ‘Clean, Flush, Dry, Bin’ by public toilet users. The campaign draws parallels to the practicing of acts of kindness without reward and recognition, and nudges individuals to be more aware of their actions behind the closed doors of the toilet cubicle. Please refer to Annex A for key campaign visuals.
3 NEA also partners various other stakeholders to reach different segments of the community directly. For instance, NEA will reach out to more than 2,000 premises across Singapore, including coffeeshops, hawker centres, parks and recreational beaches, petrol stations, sports facilities, schools and public service agencies, to publicise campaign messages.
Ground-up Initiatives From Community Partners
4 The PHC, a supporter of the campaign since 2021, continues its partnership with NEA this year to promote wider awareness of good toilet hygiene habits through PHC’s channels and network. Mr Andrew Khng, Chairman of PHC, says, “More people should be aware that public toilet cleanliness is a shared responsibility. Premises operators, users and cleaners must put in collective efforts to do their part and keep it clean. So, let’s stop pointing to each other and work towards having clean toilets together.” To encourage this partnership, the PHC works with different stakeholders through its Neighbourhood Toilet Community Group initiative to drive the message of joint responsibility in keeping public toilets clean. According to some of the participating coffeeshops such as PDSS 318 Food Cafeteria, MEETUP @ 494 and Get Together Coffeeshop, the toilet cleanliness at their premises have shown significant improvement since joining the programme.
5 The PHC will also pilot a toilet cleanliness module as part of the Buddy Clean Workshop, a programme that aims to inculcate positive social values and norms on cleanliness amongst Primary 3 and 4 students. Through the module, students will get to pick up practical skills and knowledge on how to keep public spaces, including public toilets, clean.
6 RAS continues to advocate for clean public toilets. Mr Ho Chee Kit, President of RAS, says, “Since launching the LOO (Let’s Observe Ourselves) Campaign @ Hawker Centres in 2021, we have reached out to 80 hawker centres. Educational tissue packets on showing kindness to cleaning attendants were distributed to more than 25,000 public patrons, garnering more than 1,200 online pledges to keep hawker centre toilets clean. With the launch of the LOO Campaign @ Coffeeshops on 16 November this year, we look forward to continued support from all stakeholders.” Through the LOO Campaign @ Coffeeshops, RAS will conduct training on toilet design and maintenance for related staff, toilet audits and public engagement activities through outreach activities at the coffeeshops.
7 For its part, the SKM believes that keeping public toilets clean for the next user is a simple yet important act of kindness that contributes to the well-being of a community. “By cleaning up after ourselves in public restrooms, we help instil a sense of responsibility and consideration in others and become a greater version of ourselves,” says Ms Michelle Tay, Director of SKM. “Inculcating the consideration of others also means we are responsible for one another, accommodating a sense of community and unity. Being greater leads to a kinder you, ultimately creating a stronger us. Let’s strive towards a kinder and more gracious society.”
Collective Action and Co-ownership by Everyone
8 Over the years, NEA has also made efforts to enhance public health standards in relation to the Environmental Sanitation Regime, and to support the enhancement of public toilet infrastructure. The Environmental Public Health Act 1987 was amended in 2020 to mandate baseline cleaning standards and place greater accountability on premises owners to meet those standards. In 2020, NEA also introduced a Toilet Improvement Programme for toilets in hawker centres and coffeeshops. Please refer to Annex B for a factsheet on toilets in some new hawker centres, and toilets in some hawker centres which were renovated as the centres underwent Repairs and Redecoration.
9 However, these efforts, on their own, would be insufficient to raise the overall standard of public toilet cleanliness in Singapore. All toilet users should use facilities responsibly, and this is what NEA’s annual Clean Public Toilets Campaign underscores. Rather than look to public toilet operators or cleaners to improve the cleanliness of public toilets, each of us should adopt a conscientious attitude of cleaning up after ourselves after each use of a public toilet.
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