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Abstract: Introduction. An estimated 5.6 million Kenyans defecate in the open. This exposes them to sanitation related diseases. This study analysed open defecation trends among the 47 counties in Kenya, newly created in 2013. Methods. The study used four data sets on open defecation, unimproved water supply coverage, poverty levels, and population density. Results. Mean open defecation rate across the 47 counties was 23.5% and the median rate 6.9%. The lowest rate was 0.1% and the highest 88.4%. Fifteen counties had open defecation rates of 40% and above. Another 21 counties had open defecation rates of less than 5%. Poverty was the most significant predictor accounting for 68.4% of the variance in open defecation after controlling for unimproved water supply and population density. Conclusion. Some counties have unacceptably high open defecation rates. Alleviating poverty may reduce open defecation in Kenya.
Key words: Kenya, open defecation, poverty, sanitation.
In 2015, 946 million people or 13% of the world's population was estimated to practice open defecation.1 Open defecation is defined as defecation in the fields, street gutters, bushes, bodies of water, and other open spaces. In 2015, the United Nations launched the Sustainable Development Goals. Goal number 6 aims to ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all. A key target of this goal is to eradicate open defecation by the year 2030. In sub- Saharan Africa, an estimated 215 million people practice open defecation.2 In Kenya an estimated 5.6 million people defecate in the open.3 Kenya is situated on the eastern part of Africa. It borders Ethiopia to the north, Somalia to the northeast, Tanzania to the south, Sudan to the northwest, Uganda, and Lake Victoria to the west.4 It is bordered to the east by the Indian Ocean. Kenya is divided into 47 counties, and 290 sub- counties. These are enshrined in the Constitution and the County Government Act on administration and governance. It covers 582,646 square kilometers of which 571,466 square kilometers form the land area. Approximately 80% of the land is arid or semiarid. According to the 2009 national census Kenya had a population of 38,610,097.5
Kenya enacted a new constitution in 2010.6 A key feature of this constitution was the creation of 47 semi- autonomous county governments in...