IAM announces public toilet overhaul project to complete this year

The Municipal Affairs Bureau (IAM) is planning to improve public toilets across the special administrative region by transforming them into “high quality facilities,” the government announced yesterday.

The project, which will begin this year, will involve the IAM renovating all public toilets in Macau in stages.

The bureau will study the interior design and layout of toilet space and adjust the proportion of male and female compartments, as well as the ratio for child-friendly compartments. Handrails will be added where needed in order to meet the needs of the elderly.

The IAM will also seek to introduce environmentally-friendly elements to the facilities, increase the amount of indoor foliage and review ventilation to improve the problem of bad odors.

New equipment designed to reduce physical contact within public toilets will be introduced, including automatic sensors for toilet flushing and the dispensing of toilet paper and soap.

These measures are hoped to raise the level of community hygiene and contribute toward the development of a healthy city, according to the IAM.

In total, some 60 public toilets will be reorganized under the project, while 23 facilities will be renovated. The IAM plans to draw on the assistance of the Macau Architects Association, with local architects designing the new facilities.

The President of the IAM, José Tavares, said yesterday that his bureau expects the project to be completed within the calendar year.

Previously, the IAM renovated public toilets in the areas of Lotus Flower Square, Tap Seac Square on the Macau peninsula and near Hac Sa Beach in Coloane.

With a view to reinforcing the epidemic prevention measures introduced by the government, the IAM said it regards it “necessary to speed up the development of work to improve public hygiene facilities” by initiating the public toilet overhaul project this year.

In a statement released by the government yesterday, the IAM also advanced that the project would help local workers and small businesses in Macau, with the planned renovation expected to create around 1,200 jobs. DB