Rehabilitation Project
This project is a part of our shared program with Western Water And Sanitation Forum (WEWASAFO). Our team is pleased to directly share the below report (edited for clarity, as needed).
Welcome to the School
St. Marygoret Girls Secondary School-Kalenda was started in the year 2009 by the Catholic Church. The school is located in Kalenda Village, Samitsi sub-location, Shirugu location Kakamega North sub-County within Kakamega County. The school has a total population of 137 young ladies. In addition, there are 323 girls from the primary section who also use the same facilities, increasing the school population to 460 students. With regard to staff, there are 10 teachers and six support staff.
The normal day for a student here begins at 6AM when they start their journey to school. Form ones and twos will immediately start their day by cleaning the compound and the latrines in the school from 7AM to 7:40AM. On Mondays and Fridays there is parade during which they raise the Kenyan national flag. The master on duty will then address the students, and invite the other teachers to add their own announcements. On Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, lessons begin at 8AM and go until 4:30PM, with short breaks in between and an hour luch break from 1PM to 2PM. After lessons, students play sports and games until 5PM when they return home. At home, their parents assign them other duties like cooking or fetching water for household chores.
Water Situation
There is no source of water on school grounds, so girls are sent to fetch water from an unreliable well. When that well doesn't work during the dry months, girls must walk to a spring located three kilometers away! The school doesn't even have large storage containers for fetched water. Instead, the girls have to keep water in their own small, plastic containers.
Many unfortunate cases have been reported as a result of the walk for water. As girls walk, young men, most who own motorbikes, attract girls with the temptation of a free ride to the spring. These girls take advantage of this hospitality only to find out sexual favors were required at the end of the trip. Two girls have already been reported as pregnant this year, while last year ended with a total of five pregnancies.
Furthermore, typhoid ravaged the student body during the most unfortunate time last year. The headteacher reports that a huge portion of her girls had to miss the national examinations for college entrance.
Sanitation Situation
After having to close off a set of full latrines, these hundreds of girls only have four pit latrines left on school grounds. These latrines are made of brick, and the pits inside are almost entirely full of waste. They are smelly, with cracks in the floor and walls. There is one hand-washing station set up, but not enough water to fill it.
Garbage is disposed of in a pile at the back of the school. When it's windy, it's blown all around. Despite these difficult conditions, the teachers and students are excited about the opportunity to learn more about how they can keep themselves and their environment cleaner.
Principal Joyce Luvanda told us that they have "acute water shortages in the school, which have made practicing hygiene very hard because water is part and parcel of such activities like hand-washing and mopping of the classes and offices. Having a reliable water source will better the welfare of the students and therefore positive academic performance will be realize."
Plans: Hygiene and Sanitation Training and Hand-Washing Stations
Training will be held for two days. The facilitator will use PHAST (participatory hygiene and sanitation transformation), ABCD (asset-based community development), CTC (child to child), lectures, group discussions, and handouts to teach health topics and ways to promote good practices within the school. The CTC method will prepare students to lead other students into healthy habits, as well as kickstart a CTC club for the school. This CTC club will oversee the new facilities, such as hand-washing stations, and make sure they are kept clean and in working condition. The two hand-washing stations will be delivered to the school, and the club will fill them with water on a daily basis and make sure there is always a cleaning agent such as soap or ash.
Plans: Rainwater Catchment Tank
A 50,000-liter rainwater catchment tank will be constructed on school grounds. Teachers, students, and parents will gather the materials needed for this project, including sand, ballast, bricks, and hardcore. This contribution will fuel a sense of responsibility for the school and community to take care of their new facilities. Once materials are mobilized, the WEWASAFO team will arrive to lead the construction effort.
With adequate clean water, the school will have water for drinking, cooking, cleaning, and hand-washing.
Plans: VIP Latrines
Two triple-door latrines will be constructed with local materials that the school will help gather. Normally, we designate three doors for each gender at a school, but since St. Marygoret is a girls school, all six doors will go to them. Latrine materials will be mobilized the same way as the tank, ensuring the school feels these facilities are truly theirs.
School administration and parents are positive that with these new facilities and training, their students’ academic performance will improve. Students will be healthy and empowered to focus on what’s important!
Thank You for unlocking potential at St. Marygoret Girls Secondary School!
