Juliette Kanini from Mathabithi settlement, Isiolo District, attended training on sanitation and hygiene together with her husband. “Actually the training was meant for the women, but the men got curious and they wondered what we were being taught so they joined as well.” “Since we have settled into this place, life has become easier. Water is sold for 2 Ksh per 20 litres at the water kiosk is nearby, only 1. 5 km away,” she says. During the training she learnt about keeping the house and the surroundings clean. Juliette keeps her goats away from her house using a fence of thorny bushes and her puppy dogs are kept in a separate place underground during the day. This way animal waste will not contaminate the compound the family compound. A dish rack is used to prevent dirt getting on clean plates and utensils, and they wash their hands. Her husband even dug a hole for the latrine, there is a floor made of sandbags and logs, and an iron sheet for a roof. Although the wall is not yet finished – you can see right through the branches from which it is made – the latrine is used.” This all pays off,” she says. “I don’t have to pay for medicine anymore because my children are much healthier now. I could even buy some chickens. I call it the Secret of Cleanliness.” While she is telling this story, her husband fetches the water.
This field story by IRC is based on field visits undertaken for UNICEF Kenya to study and analyze the hygiene and sanitation knowledge, attitudes and practices in three targeted districts, namely: Isiolo in Eastern Province, Garissa in North Eastern Province and Tana River in the Coastal Province.
Filed under: latrine, sanitation, school sanitation club | Tagged: hygiene, Kenya, latrine, sanitation, training | Leave a Comment »
