Kaloola – BORDA

Investing in Impact

P4G has awarded the partnership about US $370,000 in grant funding. 

Kaloola provides high-quality clean and odor-free toilets for customers in the metro Durban area in neighborhoods that lack adequate access to safe sanitation. The toilets use a patented flush technology that is water- and chemical-free. The toilet seals waste into a container transported by local teams to a local waste processing facility. The processed waste can be turned into organic fertilizer or biogas. BORDA and Kaloola are working in partnership with eThekwini Municipality-Water and Sanitation, the local utility which brings a shared goal for increased adoption of circular economy, decentralized waste treatment systems. 

Kaloola will operate in eThekwini which has more than 300,000 low-income households who lack access to safe sanitation. Some households can access publicly financed shared toilets, shared chemical toilets, or pit latrines, but they are not cleaned with regularity. 

Kaloola’s customer base in Durban comprises these two segments: 

• Households where Kaloola will install and service home toilets for a monthly service fee;
• Commercial locations such as construction sites and events where Kaloola will provide companies with toilet trailers or single toilet cabins for a monthly rental. 

Kaloola plans to gain traction in these two markets first before moving to secure municipal contracts with the eThekwini municipality and later within other regions in South Africa. 

60% of Kaloola’s home users are women and this partnership can have far-reaching positive consequences for women and girls who benefit from safe toilets at home. Kaloola will also train women in digital payments and support their financial inclusion in the digital payment sector. 

BORDA is a global Non-Profit Organization that specializes in providing sustainable environmental solutions, including Decentralized Wastewater Treatment Systems (DEWATS) and Faecal Sludge Treatment Plants (FSTPs) in over 25 countries and with more than 3,000 constructed systems to-date. BORDA will bring its significant experience in engaging with governments on safe water and sanitation access to the partnership. It will lead on the circular economy waste treatment ambitions of the partnership and work to foster partnerships with local waste processing facilities. It will also lead on any enabling environment interventions regarding waste collection and processing standards and processing. BORDA also brings significant expertise in monitoring, learning and evaluation and will share best practices on the feasibility and treatment options for container-based sanitation. 

Between April to December 2024, Kaloola has focused on strengthening its supply chain for toilet production and waste processing. The startup has formalized relationships with local suppliers to ensure the seamless delivery of toilet materials such as polymer refills. 

Kaloola is seeing an encouraging community response and interest in its products. Gender equity continues to be a priority, with the startup reporting that more than 50% of its workforce is female and 60% of the toilet users are women and girls. The startup also has an executive team with 40% female representation and is working with specialists to get BBBEE certification given to qualifying small enterprises with majority or full Black ownership. 

Kaloola continues to take steps to de-risk its business model by diversifying its audience to both individual customers and businesses. As part of positioning its model for success, Kaloola is expanding the Business to Consumer base of its business instead of channeling efforts into toilets for public housing where there is a greater barrier to entry and safety concerns for field staff. Kaloola will also focus its services on trailer toilets for events and festivals. These present a high margin potential and support the overall impact goals of sustainable waste management. The startup aims to have 10 toilets in service by the end of 2025. 

As part of building brand awareness among government officials and investors, Kaloola continues to participate in national and regional events. The startup won the award for Best Green Economy Startup at the AfricArena tech accelerator event and will pitch its business model at the grand finale to be held in Cape Town in December 2024. The startup was also featured in AfricArena’s Wired outlet sharing the potential, successes and pitfalls it has faced to date. 

During the P4G funding period, the partnership aims to raise US $2 million in additional investment and increase the number of active in-home users from 647 to more than 2,000. It also aims to create 28 jobs. 

The partnership comprises the following partners: Kaloola (lead business partner); Bremen Overseas Research and Development Association (BORDA) (lead administrative partner); Khansiya Projects; Loowatt Ltd.; eThewkini Municipality-Water and Sanitation; University of KwaZulu-Natal-UKZN. 

*Kaloola is a brand launched by Loowatt Africa and Khansiya Projects. It is the trading name of Loowatt Africa, which is a subsidiary company of Loowatt Ltd (UK).