NonDiscrimination Acceptability “States must realize their human rights obligations related to sanitation in a non-discriminatory manner. They are obliged to pay special attention to groups particularly vulnerable to exclusion and discrimination in relation to sanitation, including people living in poverty, sanitation workers, women, children, elderly persons, people with disabilities, people affected by health conditions, refugees and IDPs, and minority groups, among others. Priority should be given to meeting the needs of these groups and, where necessary, positive measures should be adopted to redress existing discrimination and to ensure their access to sanitation. States are obliged to eliminate both de jure and de facto discrimination on grounds of race, colour, sex, age, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth, physical or mental disability, health status, or any other civil, political, social or other status.” Information “States are also obliged to ensure that concerned individuals and Accessibility communities are informed and have access to information about sanitation and hygiene and are enabled to participate in all processes related to the planning, construction, maintenance and monitoring of sanitation services. Full participation, including representatives of all concerned groups is key to ensuring that sanitation solutions answer the actual needs of communities and are affordable, technically feasible, and culturally acceptable. Participation is also crucial for achieving community ownership and dedication in order to bring about the required behavioural changes. All people must have full and equal access to information concerning sanitation and its effect on their health and environment. Information should be made available through various media and should be translated in all relevant languages and dialects to ensure the greatest possible circulation.” “Sanitation facilities and services must be culturally acceptable. Personal sanitation is still a highly sensitive issue across regions and cultures and differing perspectives about which sanitation solutions are acceptable must be taken into account regarding design, positioning and conditions for use of sanitation facilities. In many cultures, to be acceptable, construction of toilets will need to ensure privacy. In most cultures, acceptability will require separate facilities for women and men in public places, and for girls and boys in schools. Women’s toilets need to accommodate menstruation needs. Facilities will need to allow for culturally acceptable hygiene practices, such as hand washing and anal and genital cleansing.” 7.1.2 Obligations of State Parties Right to Adequate Food The core obligation that State Parties are bound to respect in terms of the right to adequate food is the obligation to ensure “for everyone under its jurisdiction access to the minimum essential food which is sufficient, nutritionally adequate and safe, to ensure their freedom from hunger.”239 In terms of the progressive realization of the right to adequate food, States parties are obliged to take steps: • to respect existing access to adequate food by not taking any measures that result in preventing such access; • to protect the right to adequate food by ensuring “that enterprises or individuals do not deprive individuals of their access to adequate food”; • to fulfil the right to adequate food by pro-actively engaging “in activities intended to strengthen people’s access to and utilization of resources and means to ensure their 60