On Monday, June 8, 2026, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and LIXIL Corporation signed a memorandum of understanding regarding operational collaboration and cooperation aimed at addressing water and sanitation challenges in developing countries. The signing ceremony was attended by Akihiko Tanaka, President of JICA, and Kinya Seto, Director, Representative Executive Officer, President, and CEO of LIXIL.
JICA President Tanaka (left) and LIXIL President Seto (right) introducing SATO products
This partnership aims to further advance initiatives in the water and sanitation sector and promote sustainable sanitation services by combining public cooperation with private-sector business.
The reality is that while we take a clean and hygienic environment for granted, it remains a major challenge for many people.
Around the world, there are still many regions with insufficient access to safe toilets and handwashing facilities, and improving sanitation is a critical development issue that impacts health, education, nutrition, gender equality, peacebuilding, and humanitarian aid. For example, more than 1,000 children worldwide die every day—approximately 440,000 annually—from diarrheal diseases caused by unsanitary conditions. Furthermore, the resilience of water and sanitation services is increasingly critical due to climate change-related floods and droughts, the spread of infectious diseases, and the growing number of refugees and internally displaced persons.
Leveraging its cooperative relationships with national governments and its on-the-ground networks, JICA has supported the improvement of water and sanitation services through initiatives such as water supply, sewerage, hygiene promotion, and human resource development. Through its social business “SATO,” LIXIL has provided toilets and other sanitation products that are affordable and accessible to everyone. By collaborating with various partners to build self-sustaining local ecosystems responsible for the manufacturing, sales, and installation of sanitation products, LIXIL has improved sanitation conditions for more than 100 million people in 59 countries worldwide.
Signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on Business Collaboration and Cooperation Between JICA and LIXIL
Under this memorandum of understanding, we will combine JICA’s expertise in policy and institutional cooperation and its relationships with governments with LIXIL’s strengths in product development, market creation, and business expansion to promote the development of a “Sanitation Economy” that enables the self-sustaining circulation of sanitation services at the local level. Through this initiative, we will strive to go beyond mere aid and build a system in which local people manufacture, sell, install, and maintain products, ensuring their continued use. Specifically, we will first work to promote the adoption of safe toilets and handwashing facilities and the establishment of hygiene habits in Kenya and Malawi, targeting schools, healthcare facilities, refugee and host communities, and households. At the same time, we will train local personnel to handle the sale, installation, and maintenance of sanitation facilities and build supply chains to establish sanitation services as a sustainable business.
In Kenya, in coordination with the government’s “Sirika Plan”—which aims to enable refugees in the Kakuma Refugee Camp and surrounding areas to participate in social and economic life as members of the community—JICA’s water supply infrastructure development and LIXIL’s SATO initiative are collaborating to expand market-driven sanitation improvements, with the goal of providing water and sanitation services that include refugees. In Malawi, we aim to develop resilient water and sanitation services capable of functioning even during prolonged flooding caused by natural disasters. In collaboration with a JICA project, we will promote initiatives that include the introduction of SATO products.
Such initiatives go beyond simply addressing local challenges; they also contribute to the stability of the international community and efforts to combat infectious diseases, and ultimately help ensure the safety and prosperity of the entire world, including Japan. Furthermore, they are expected to support the overseas expansion of Japanese companies’ technologies, expertise, and business operations, while also helping to strengthen bilateral trust.
JICA will provide support through policy formulation in collaboration with the host country’s government, and by combining this with LIXIL’s product and business development capabilities, we will promote social implementation that would be difficult to achieve on our own.
Building on our achievements in Kenya and Malawi, we plan to expand the “sanitation economy” model to other regions, with the goal of providing safe and sanitary toilets to 500,000 people across Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.
Comment by Akihiko Tanaka, President of JICA
“Global challenges related to water and sanitation remain severe, and many people still lack access to safe sanitation services. It has also become clear that simply building facilities is not enough to ensure the long-term adoption of sanitation practices; there is a need to establish systems that function sustainably on the ground. This collaboration with LIXIL combines the strengths of public institutions—such as policy development and cooperation with national governments—with the capabilities of private companies in product development, market creation, and on-the-ground business operations. Through this partnership, we aim to go beyond mere aid and realize a ‘sanitation economy’ that enables sanitation services to operate in a self-sustaining cycle. By achieving concrete results in the field—including in Kenya and Malawi—we will establish a Japanese public-private partnership model that brings sustainable change to the lives of people in developing countries.”
Akihiko Tanaka, President of JICA
Comment by Kinya Seto, Representative Executive Officer, President, and CEO of LIXIL
“Globally, approximately 3.4 billion people still lack access to safe sanitation facilities, and their basic living conditions are not adequately secured. LIXIL has set a goal of improving sanitation conditions for the ‘next 100 million people’ by the fiscal year ending March 2031. We will further accelerate the creation of a market-driven ‘sanitation economy’ that grows autonomously on the ground through new public-private partnerships with JICA and national governments, addressing complex and serious issues such as these sanitation challenges, support for refugee self-reliance, and addressing climate change, we will further accelerate the creation of a market-driven ‘sanitation economy’ that grows autonomously on the ground through new public-private partnerships with JICA and national governments.”
Kinya Seto, President of LIXIL
Reference: Pillars of Collaboration
1. Conducting activities that contribute to the investigation and improvement of water and sanitation issues in developing countries
In collaboration with initiatives such as technical cooperation, various surveys, and financial assistance, we will work together to address refugee issues, combat infectious diseases, and investigate and improve water and sanitation challenges that arise in the context of disasters and climate change.
2. Conducting outreach and educational activities regarding water and sanitation issues in developing countries
To achieve the SDGs, we will conduct awareness-raising campaigns, development education, training sessions, and events both domestically and internationally, with the aim of promoting understanding of water and sanitation issues and fostering behavioral change.
3. Exchange of information on water and sanitation issues in developing countries
To improve the quality of projects and make their implementation more effective, we will continuously exchange information on water and sanitation needs and corresponding measures for each region and issue.
© Source JICA