Who’s got a Clean Loo Then!: Bali

I never really think about toilets when I visit them, my main objective of course being to empty my bladder and stare at the graffiti or watch the mosquitoes copulate in the corner. However, having clean toilets in an Indonesian airport is a big deal. So much so, there is a competition to see who has the cleanest bowls or urinals (whichever you prefer!). And, it seems that Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali has really flash pans. Here’s more from the Jakarta Post:

The Culture and Tourism Ministry has named Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport as having the cleanest airport toilets in Indonesia, with the country’s main gateway, Soekarno-Hatta, in fourth place.

Of the country’s 12 international airports, Riau’s Sultan Syarif II Kasim airport and Riau Islands’ Hang Nadim airport took second and third place, while last was Nusa Tenggara Timur’s El-Tari.

“I’m happy to see that the airport operators have now started to improve the conditions of their toilets. Clean toilets are crucial in promoting tourism,” said minister Jero Wacik after presenting awards to the winners at ministry headquarters Thursday.

The awards are the first to be presented since the program launched in early 2006.

According to the minister, airport toilets “reflected the country”.

“Yet unfortunately, most of the airport operators tended to neglect toilet cleanliness, resulting in poor image for hygiene here,” Jero said.

The minister said he planned to approach local administrations to get them to clean up toilets at tourism attractions.

He expressed the hope that Indonesia would be able to attract seven million foreign tourists next year as part of “Visit Indonesia Year”.

The judges of the contest assessed the condition of the toilets, maintenance, aesthetic aspects and facilities available.

The judges, who comprised a number of government officials and organization members, visited and inspected airport toilets around the country and interviewed airport operators.

Head of the jury, who is also the founder and chairman of the Indonesian Toilet Operators Association, Naning Adiwoso, said that although having improved compared to two years ago, before the contest was first announced, the conditions of toilets at the 12 airports still failed to comply with international standards.

“The toilets are still far from the standard. It’s not easy to make Indonesians aware of the importance of clean toilets, as most of them still consider toilets as things that are away at the back part of the home or building, and are usually dirty,” explained Naning.

She added that urging better maintenance and cleaning was enough on its own; heightened awareness among toilet users was also necessary if the country wanted to see toilet conditions improve.

“We must educate them to use toilets the right way,” said Naning.
The awards ceremony coincided with National Tourism Day on Sept. 27, and formed part of the national clean toilets movement, a project initiated by the Culture and Tourism Ministry.

The ministry is planning to sponsor public service ads next year to encourage people to use toilets in the right way. Jero said he had ordered his staff to provide ministry budget to help improve Indonesia’s toilets.