Sanitation Revolution Through School Children
A Case Study Of
School Sanitation and Hygiene Education Programme
Shree Bhadgaun Sunwari High School
Sunsari, BHASI VDC
Prepared by
UNICEF, Nepal
December 2001
ABBREVIATIONS
CBOCommunity Based Organization
CDOChief District Officer
DDCDistrict Development Committee
DEDistrict Engineer
DEODistrict Education Office
DPCPDecentralized Planning for Children Programme
DSCDistrict Steering Committee
DWSODistrict Water Supply Office
DWSSDepartment of Water Supply and Sewerage
GRADGroup of Rural Awareness and Development
HMG/NHis Majesty’s Government of Nepal
IECInformation, Education and Communication
INGOInternational Non-Governmental Organization
LDOLocal Development Officer
NGONon Governmental Organization
NRCSNepal Red Cross Society
SMSanitation Motivator
SMCSchool Management Committee
SSHESchool Sanitation and Hygiene Education
UNICEFUnited Nations Children’s Fund
VDCVillage Development Committee
CONTENTPage
Executive Summary4
- Introduction
5-7
a)Objectives
b)Methodology
- School Features8
3. The Programme Intervention Strategies9-12
i). District Steering Committee
ii). School Management Committee
iii). Nepal Red Cross Society a Leading NGO
iv). Child Club
v). BHASI VDC
- Major Activities and Remarkable Contribution13-14
5. Strengths of the Programme15-16
- Recommendations17
7. Conclusion18
- Annexes
19-24
8.1Case Story
8.2List of the People Visited
8.3Check List
Executive Summary
Poor sanitation and hygiene have been at the root of many preventable diseases in rural Nepal. The country has to bear an enormous cost in terms of high mortality and morbidity affecting all sections of population. Acknowledging the importance of sanitation, HMG/N adopted the National Sanitation Policy and Guideline prioritizing sanitation as an integral part of the development strategy. So far the efforts at the promotion of better sanitary conditions, have not produced measurable results as desired. To strengthen this programme UNICEF Nepal has been continuously supporting since two decades for the improvement of health and sanitation status of the people.
To promote good sanitation and hygiene practices at rural areas SSHE programme was introduced in Bhasi VDC as a model using six schools with focus on Shree Bhadgaun Sunwari High School. The district based line agencies, NGOs and VDC level institutions extended materials and other support to plan, to propagate, to implement and to sustain the sanitation and hygiene education activities.
The Child Club is at the center of SSHE in this school. It has been formed under a girl president, with a total membership strength of 500 children as the general members and 13 member executive committee provides leadership to it. Under the Child Club they have formed four sub-committees responsible for their respective activities. Other important partners in the SSHE movement are DSC, SMC, Headmaster/Teachers and VDC. UNICEF support is channeled to Bhasi VDC through NRCS which is the focal coordinating agency for the programme.
One of the remarkable activities of the Child Club is a monthly levy collection of Rs. 2.00 from each member and fund raising by means of lottery for the promotion of sanitation activities in the school. This has proved a big step to sustain the SSHE programme. The Bhasi VDC also supported the SSHE donating Rs. 180,000 for the construction of latrines in the six schools of that VDC. The SSHE programme in the project school stands out as a successful example of the coordinated efforts made by all concerned including GOs and NGOs. The programme success was due to the clarity in the roles and responsibilities of each partner for the model concept.
As recommendation, it is suggested that regular monitoring be done by DSC and other partners. Refresher training and exchange visit to the SMC and Child Club members will enhance their knowledge and capability. In order to maximize the function of the Child Club in a continuous manner, new student leaders should be promoted. The periodic progress report with comments and recommendations from the authorized agency or personnel need to be well disseminated to the SMC and Child Club members.
The model concept of the intensive SSHE programme has made great impact just within the two months of its implementation. The model concept of SSHE has energized and inspired positively the target community and school towards the benefits of sanitation and hygiene. The programme needs to be continued focusing on SSHE programme activities to secure the intended results in the long run.
1.Introduction
Poor sanitation is one of the key problems for the socio-economic under-development of the country. Water and sanitation related health problems remain one of the major killer diseases. It is estimated that 28,000 children die every year of diarrhoea. For this the country has to bear an enormous economic cost. The estimated annual economic cost of inadequate sanitation in 1999 ranged from Rs.4 to 10 billion. The challenges in sanitation remain huge and continue to grow.
Acknowledging the importance of sanitation, the National Sanitation Policy and Guideline adopted by His Majesty's Government of Nepal (HMG/N) has prioritized and taken promotion of sanitation as an integral part of the development strategy of the country. Inspite of some efforts made so far in the promotion of better sanitary conditions there has not been much satisfactory results. The UNICEF Nepal as a close partner of the government in this sectoral activity has been continuously providing support since the last two decades for the improvement of health and sanitation status of the people, especially in minimizing the diarrhoeal diseases among the children, as this has been one of the major reasons for high rate of mortality and morbidity.
Among the Five Regions in the country the Eastern Region has relatively greater number of interventions from related agencies. The Sunsari District was selected as a Decentralized Planning for Children Programme (DPCP) district with the aim to intensify the hygiene and sanitation programme taking into consideration many parameters. The School Sanitation and Hygiene Education (SSHE) programme has been initiated by UNICEF Nepal with the objective of educating the school children and motivating them to gear up changes in the community through their active involvement. The guideline prepared for the implementation of SSHE programme is regarded as a tool. If properly implemented it would bring measurable changes in the community.
The District Steering Committee (DSC) decided to select Bhasi VDC and its six schools from Sunsari District for demonstration. As per the decision of DSC, SSHE programme has been incorporated as an integral component of the Community Sanitation Approach programme in this VDC. The SSHE in Bhasi VDC is a demand driven programme, which was initiated by the community members and supported by UNICEF Nepal together with other organizations and NGOs like FORWARD and GRAD.
This case study has been prepared on the SSHE programme in Shree Bhadgaun Sunwari High School Bhasi VDC of Sunsari District, which is one of the leading government schools in the area.
a).Objectives of the Study
The fundamental objective of this case study is to assess the success and find out the improvement points for the programme in the target school.
The specific objectives are:
Examine the follow-up of the SSHE guideline and procedures developed by UNICEF Nepal.
Study the roles and responsibilities of different stakeholders and partners.
Observe the school environment, sanitation, Child Clubs and its activities.
Assess the strengths of the programme.
Observe whether the resources are properly managed.
b)Methodology Adopted
2.School Features
Shree Bhadgaun Sunwari High School offering courses from elementary to 10+2 levels is a leading government school established in 1951, situated in North-West part of the Sunsari District. The total land area of the school is 7 bigha. The school has a total of 702 girls and 698 boys. A majority of the student is from the Brahmin and Chaudhari communities.
Since the past two months, the SSHE has been introduced intensively in the school conducting various programmes such as reformation of Meena Child Club under the girl leadership (which was already there known as Meena Club), orientation to the teachers and Child Club students, baseline survey in the near by village and promotion of community awareness.
In this school six latrines, two for urinal purpose and four for urinal and defecation are in used. All latrines with septic tank were found properly maintained. For drinking water the school had three tubewells with platforms and one tap and for the wastewater management a direct link drainage pipe was laid up to the stream.
Separate Urinal for Girls
The school compound looks clean and attractive with no problem of waste management as the school has placed five containers for waste collection. And when asked with the students about the waste management, they explained that the collected waste is burnt at the end of the working day and the ash is used in garden, which was found to be very impressive.
“Wash hands to stay clean after visiting the latrine”
A slogan for better hygiene
3.The Programme Intervention Strategies
i)District Steering Committee (DSC)
District Steering Committee Meeting
The District Steering Committee (DSC) was formed in 1999 under the chairmanship of the Sunsari DDC Chairperson Mr. Arvind Prasad Mehata comprising representatives from NRCS, DEO, DWSO, UNICEF and other concerned agencies who are working in water and sanitation sector. Under the agreement of DSC the UNICEF/Nepal is supporting to Bhasi VDC through the Nepal Red Cross Society. The support is channeled to Bhasi VDC through NRCS. The comments and suggestions made by DSC proved very helpful. After the formation of DSC one-day workshop was held for SMC chairperson, VDC chairperson, Headmaster, and Child Club President.
As per the decision DSC decided to select 10 VDCs for the programme implementation. Under this DSC conducted studies and developed action plan. The information was collected from those 10 VDCs by using methods like interviews, discussions and observations. As per the suggestion made by the DSC meeting they decided to select only one VDC in order to make it a model village and the choice fell on Bhasi VDC, where the DSC in response to community people’s request, launched Community Sanitation Approach in 2000 and later introduced School Sanitation and Hygiene Education (SSHE) Programme in Shree Bhadgaun Sunwari High School in 2001. One important reason behind its success was good response from community people.
DSC is responsible for overall policy formulation, monitoring and supervision. The DSC imparts responsibility to properly mobilize the resources at the local level in order to reinforce the programme in the project areas. The DSC endorses the detailed plan of action developed for SSHE activities and through periodic meeting and site visit provides directions to the coordinating agency and other concerned partners as well. The DSC coordinates with UNICEF and other central level agencies for necessary support action.
ii)School Management Committee (SMC)
The SMC has been formed under the chairmanship of VDC vice Chairperson Mr Narayan Prasad Kafle. It has been helping to implement the SSHE programme in Shree Bhadgaun Sunwari High School. Other members of the SMC include headmaster, and parents. The headmaster of the school is the member-secretary of the SMC and is made responsible for the implementation of the detailed plan of action developed and adopted by SMC. Through periodic meetings, the headmaster reports about the progress, weakness and other issues of SSHE programme. As per the guideline the SMC is responsible for all activities within the school and its monitoring and evaluation as well.
School Management Committee Chairperson
The SMC has been made clear about their roles and responsibilities through one-day orientation by the UNICEF staff and other resource person. The SMC acts as a liaison between the community and the school. All political commitment required for the successful implementation of the programme is to be mobilized by the SMC.
iii)The Nepal Red Cross Society as Coordinating Agency
The Nepal Red Cross Society (NRCS) is a national NGO, which has basic objective to provide volunteer services to the people for their betterment. The prevailing strong network of NRCS from center to the grassroot level and their experience in working with the community is the reason behind for selecting NRCS Sunsari as the lead coordinating agency and secretary of district steering committee for this programme.
All SSHE activities are being channeled through NRCS and it has the overall responsibility to provide all kind of support to the concerned partners. In the district level the NRCS coordinates with other GOs and NGOs in order to maximize their support for the better implementation of the SSHE. The NRCS plays the role of the liaison between the SMC and DSC. All kinds of training and orientation activities are also facilitated by the NRCS. The budget required for the programme is made available to all through the NRCS and it is accountable for the financial matters.
iv)Child Club
The students of Bhasi secondary school had already learned about social work in their community through the reformation of Meena Child Club under the leadership of a girl student. The SSHE programme was introduced focusing same child Club in the school. In total 500 children are the members of the club and a 13 member executive committee provides leadership to it. Out of 13 member executive committee 8 are boys and 5 are girls. This club is the focal for required activities. Within the club there are four sub-committees comprising 7-9 students responsible for respective activities, as follows:
As the success of the programme entirely depends upon the involvement of students, the child club is regarded as the backbone of the SSHE programme. In order to make the club active the SMC is always in good harmony with the club leaders and through their interaction better ways are looked for anticipated results. The child club is instrumental in creating interest among the students for better sanitary practices and leadership development.
V) Bhasi Village Development Committee
School Sanitation and Hygiene Education programme in Bhasi VDC is a demand driven programme. The selection of Bhasi VDC for the programme has been justified by the good coordination and active participation of VDC. Recently the VDC provided its concrete support in the form of a donation of Rs. One Lakh Eighty Thousand for the construction of latrines in six schools.
For a VDC to set aside such a generous grant to implement the SSHE programmes through a school shows a model support to the success of the crucial basic sanitation which has to be considered a remarkable example for all others. In order to bring awareness among the school children and community people Bhasi VDC organized various programmes described in the following section.
4.Major Activities and Remarkable Contributions
a)Apart from the National Sanitation Action Week Programme, the District Steering Committee decided to launch sanitation campaign in Bhasi VDC from Aswin 20-29, 2058. For this project the school initiated different programme by involving school children/child club for the promotion of sanitation and health in the school and community. The following activities were carried out with the support and involvement of school children and other partners:
Mass rally intended to create general awareness on hygiene and sanitation.
Essay competition among the school children on hygiene and sanitation related topics
Street drama with message on health, proper sanitation and hygiene
Village cleaning campaign in which every household sent one person to participate.
Postering, Hoarding Board Display, and use of public notice board.
Scenes from village cleaning campaign
The following major contributions were received in support of the sanitation week programme:
Forestry User's Committee distributed plants to six schools for plantation in the school compound
Udhyog Banijya Sangh (Federation of Industries and Commerce) distributed 35 containers for waste collection in different corners of the village. It provided some banners required for the campaign as well.
GRAD, a local NGO, gave refresher training to 200 Sanitation Motivators and Sanitation Volunteers.
DDC, Sunsari constructed a graveled approach road to the school.
Women involved NGO aired sanitation related messages from the local radio throughout the sanitation week.