Thin 600 mm square SanPlats reinforced with chicken wire can be made locally for a few dollars and are therefore generally affordable by low income communities. Where termite-proof wood is unobtainable SanPlats are made the same size as RC slabs. In addition to controlling flies and smells, they provide an easily-cleaned surface near the squat hole. Since then thousands have given satisfactory service wherever solid material is used for anal cleaning. Many VIP latrines are fine structures, of which the owners are very proud.
Foreign donors are often anxious to give 'the best' to the people they are trying to help.
Consequently it is not unusual for a project to provide a few dozen very good VIPs, each costing several hundred dollars. If the funds had been used to help householders build their own low-cost varieties the overall benefit would have been infinitely greater. In Zimbabwe Peter Morgan has developed a range of VIP latrines in addition to the well-known spiral type. He has rectangular VIPs using one bag, two bags, three bags and four bags of cement, with corresponding reduced cost. The one bag VIP has sun-dried brick walls and a thatch roof.