Kampala — STAKEHOLDERS in the sanitation sector have been urged to design user friendly technologies for the construction of latrines in a bid to improve sanitation.

During the opening of a sanitation and hygiene improvement campaign at Hotel Africana recently, a sanitation coordinator in the water and environment ministry, Daudi Mukama, said the high cost of constructing pitlatrines and poor workmanship were sabotaging efforts to improve sanitation.

"The cost of constructing latrines is extremely high and this has been worsened by contractors building substandard latrines," he said.

Mukama added that efforts to improve sanitation in the country were still low despite massive investments.

He also attacked the sanitation marketing approach used to sensitise the public on sanitation, saying their strategies do not preach the message well enough."There is nothing in the strategy to trigger something in the public, so we have to rethink our approach," he said.

A report indicated that residents preferred the permanent latrines to the traditional pit latrines built with logs mud and wattle.

The report also pointed out that lack of affordable and durable latrine designs, growing scarcity of traditional building materials and the high cost of construction materials are a hindrance to the adoption of safe latrines in the district.