2. ‘As a widow, I didn’t have the strength to build a toilet. I am so thankful for my loving community.’ Bawili, Democratic Republic of Congo ‘As a widow, I didn’t have the strength to build a toilet. I am so thankful for my loving community.’ Bawili, Democratic Republic of Congo

3. Today, 526 million women will have no choice but to go to the toilet out in the open. By the end of the year, women and girls will have spent 97 billion hours finding a place to go.

4. Bawili A widow Not enough money for toilet materials Not enough strength to dig a pit

5. Mwandiga Trois A post-war community of people returning from being refugees No clean water and no toilets Shame and danger for women

6. Tearfund’s Community Health Club Meets under a tree weekly Bawili and her neighbours have learnt about sanitation They’ve written a song about toilets!

7. The club learnt to work together They help the most needy among them

8. Bawili now has a toilet! Bawili’s club is called Na Sohakelwa, which means ‘I’m happy’

9. ‘The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.’ Psalm 28:7 (New Living Translation)

10. Bawili is so thankful. She says: ‘As a widow, I didn’t have the strength to build a toilet. I am so thankful for my loving community.’

11. What lens do we look at life through? Greed or gratitude? Fear or God’s favour?

12. When we approach God with gratitude, we draw close to him (Psalm 100:4). Gratitude opens our eyes to see that he loves us and gave his life for us (John 3:16; 1 Chronicles 16:34).

13. When we look at the world through eyes of gratitude, we take our eyes off our problems and fix them onto God: the author and finisher of our faith (1 Thessalonians 5:18). He blesses us to be a blessing to others: all we do for others is out of gratitude for what he has done for us (Colossians 3:17).

14. Food for thought: One in three people in the world still don’t have a safe and hygienic loo. One billion people are still forced to relieve themselves out in the open.

15. ‘The best thing about having our own toilet is the privacy. We know now that we can’t be seen by boys or men as we go to the toilet.’ Zaina