Xi leads China's 'toilet revolution'

November 19 marks World Toilet Day. On this day, let's learn about China's "toilet revolution."

In 1993, only 7.5 percent of rural residents in the country had access to sanitary toilets. That figure rose to 68 percent by the end of 2020, according to official statistics. The question is what happened?

In 2015, Chinese President Xi Jinping declared a "toilet revolution" in an effort to build a more civilized and sanitary society. The country since then has experienced a nationwide campaign to upgrade toilets.

"Toilet improvement is not a trivial matter," Xi said in a November 2017 instruction. "It's key to building an urban and rural civilization."

On his inspection tours, Xi often checked the toilets when visiting residents' homes.

In a July 2021 instruction, Xi said the "toilet revolution" would continue as an important task for the next five years of rural vitalization. He urged authorities at all levels to perform their duties and produce concrete outcomes.

Toilets and living environments have seen notable upgrades and improvements through sustained efforts.

In November 2021, the number of public toilets in China's cities and counties, excluding those in parks, scenic spots and public transportation facilities, surpassed 370,000, nearly double the number in 2017, according to the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development.

(Produced by Huang Jingjing, Di Jingyuan and Li Bowen; Kong Shiyao also contributed to the video)