Consider the following statements regarding World Toilet Organization:
- 1.It is one of the agencies of the United Nations.
- 2.World Toilet Summit, World Toilet Day and World Toilet College are the initiatives of this organization, to inspire action to tackle the global sanitation crisis.
- 3.The main focus of its function is to grant funds to the least developed countries and developing countries to achieve the end of open defecation.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (a) 2 only
The World Toilet Organization is a Singapore-based non-profit founded by Jack Sim on 19 November 2001, not a UN body. It started World Toilet Day, the World Toilet Summit and the World Toilet College, and it works by advocacy, training and local sanitation markets rather than by handing out grants to countries.
- ✗ 1. WTO describes itself as a global non-profit registered in Singapore. The UN adopted its 19 November day as UN World Toilet Day in 2013 through a resolution Singapore sponsored, but that did not make WTO a UN agency.
- ✓ 2. WTO launched World Toilet Day and the World Toilet Summit in 2001 and the World Toilet College in 2005, all to push sanitation up the global agenda.
- ✗ 3. Its work is lobbying, education and training, and helping local sanitation businesses (for example through SaniShop); it is not a funding agency that gives grants to poorer countries.
Remember · World Toilet Organization: Singapore non-profit, founded 19 Nov 2001 by Jack Sim. Started World Toilet Day (UN-recognised 2013), World Toilet Summit (2001), World Toilet College (2005).
Sources
- United Nations (DESA / UN-Water), World Toilet Day 2015 concept note: background ↗ “The 2015 World Toilet Day (WTD) at the United Nations (UN) is an initiative of the Singapore Government and a Singapore NGO, the World Toilet Organisation.”
- United Nations, World Toilet Day: Background ↗ “World Toilet Day is coordinated by UN-Water, the United Nations inter-agency coordination mechanism on water and sanitation.”
- World Toilet Organization: About Us (history) ↗ · reference work “WTO established World Toilet Day and the World Toilet Summit in 2001; this was followed by the World Toilet College in 2005. … World Toilet Organization (WTO) is a global non-profit committed to improving toilet and sanitation conditions worldwide. WTO empowers individuals through education, training and building local marketplace opportunities”
- World Toilet Organization: Our Movement ↗ · reference work “19 November was officially recognised as UN World Toilet Day on July 24, 2013, the result of our relentless commitment to raising awareness on the sanitation crisis and a resolution sponsored by the Singapore government on our behalf.”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2024, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). ·