Urban sanitation coverage in rapidly urbanizing developing regions has increased only slightly over the last 20 years, and the number of people without access to improved sanitation has grown 35 percent, to 684 million people. Although access to toilets is generally higher in urban than in rural areas, sanitary conditions for poor people in urban areas are I. Scale of the Challenge aggravated by high-density living, inadequate septage and solid waste management, and poor drainage.