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
Fetching water at 6AM is part of the daily routine for the students of Bukhulunya Primary School. They gather this water to clean classrooms before class begins every morning. Lacking a water facility at school, they are expected to bring this water from home. Throughout the day, they are sent out to collect water, since what was brought is quickly used. Students spend their time in between classes fetching water, too. It takes them, on average, 45 minutes to do so. The collected water is stored in two small plastic water storage tanks. Bukhulunya Primary School’s priority on education despite their resource challenges makes it more reputable than many other schools in the community.
Student enrollment is at 978, and the school employs 30 teachers and three support staff. (Editor's Note: While this many people may have access on any given day, realistically a single water source can only support a population of 350-500 people. This community would be a good candidate for a second project in the future so adequate water is available. To learn more, click here.)
Water Situation
Students in the school do not have access to sanitary water. Their current water source is an unprotected spring. Students are sent out to fetch this spring water with their lidless jerrycans brought from home. The containers are cleaned at home only if the student has access to soap and water.
The school has access to a borehole; however, it is contaminated by seepage from a nearby sewage. That is why students are compelled to fetch water from the unprotected spring. Despite that, students occasionally drink the ill-treated, contaminated water from the borehole.
The effect of drinking water from these sources is prominent among children who have routinely been infected with pathogens, resulting in Diarrhea, Typhoid, and Malaria. Constant sickness due to consumption of contaminated water forces students to miss school routinely, severely hampering their educational growth. The need for a clean water source in this school is imperative.
Sanitation and Hygiene Situation
Aside from water, there is an additional need for latrines in the school. The school doesn’t have enough latrines for both boys and girls, resulting in open defecation as a continual problem. (Editors Note: Open defecation — the practice of disposing human feces in the fields, forests, bushes, and open bodies of water — is an issue the community could potentially be facing). High instances of open defecation result in students facing unsanitary conditions, which over time degrade their health.
The school has provided the students with two hand-washing stations but they lack cleaning agents such as soap. Hand-washing with soap at critical moments during the day prevents the spread of diseases like diarrhea and cholera, which are transmitted via fecal-oral routes. (Editors Note: Fecal-oral route — a route of transmission of a disease, when pathogens in fecal particles passing from one host are introduced into the oral cavity of another host. It is common and one of the main ways infectious diseases are spread globally).
Overall, the school has a positive attitude towards hygiene and sanitation because they are excited about the opportunity to learn and adapt their behavior. It’s crucial to educate and advocate on the importance of sanitation.
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. Students will no longer waste valuable time walking to the spring.
Plans: VIP Latrines
Two triple-door latrines will be constructed, providing three new latrines for each gender. Latrine materials will be mobilized the same way as the tank, ensuring the school feels these facilities are truly theirs. And with a rainwater catchment tank nearby, there will be enough water to keep them clean.
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!
