Indicators for evaluating shared sanitation quality: a systematic review and recommendations for sanitation monitoring

Shared sanitation facilities have replaced open defecation in many areas, improving sanitation access. Although a broad body of literature has been published regarding the importance of shared sanitation services, it is still unclear how to assess their quality. The objective of this review was to synthesize evidence on the use of shared sanitation facilities in informal settlements and identify indicators for assessing their quality. We conducted a systematic review of relevant studies and a total of 248 studies were included in the final analysis. Findings include a proposed list of indicators for evaluating the quality of shared sanitation such as the number of people sharing facilities, cleanliness, privacy, facility location, accessibility, and safety, and a tool for distinguishing between sanitation facilities that are improved shared, basic shared and unimproved shared. We recommend incorporating the proposed indicators in primary data collection, and routine national and global sanitation monitoring

Climber species composition, abundance and relationship with trees in a Nigerian secondary forest

Abstract Climbers play different roles in forest biology and ecology and are the first to be eliminated during forest clearing but little is known about the species composition, distribution and relationship with tree species of this group of plants of tropical forest. This study thus investigated the species composition, abundance and tree relationship of climbers along altitudinal gradient in four 0.06 ha plots in a secondary forest at Ile-Ife, Nigeria. All trees \u3e=10 cm g.b.h were examined for the presence of climbers in the plots. There were 49 climber species consisting of 35 liana and fourteen vine species distributed over 41 genera and 28 families in the forest. Lianas contributed 34% and vines 13.7% of the plant species in the forest. Climber basal area, density, number of species, genera and families increased with altitude. Forty-two per cent (42%) of the trees in the forest carried climbers. There was significant positive correlation (P \u3c= 0.05) between girth sizes of host trees of 31-50 cm with the girths of climbers on them indicating that trees of these girth sizes are highly susceptible to climber infestation. Tree species host density and size are important factors in determining the presence of climbers on a tree