Socio-economic wellbeing
Clean water against forgotten diseases
- Ivory Coast Country
- 308.825 € Investment
- 2019-22 Length
The Challenge
In Sub-Saharan Africa, water is a scarce asset and over 300 million people do not have safe access to it.
Chiépo is a rural community of 5,372 inhabitants in Ivory Coast with a strong presence of NTDs such as the Buruli ulcer and leprosy. Deficient hygiene and sanitation practices are also frequent here: outdoor defecation, no handwashing with soap and water after defecating and after handling children’s faeces, the consumption of unclean water, and so on.
The majority of the population lives off agriculture and 49% of people live below the poverty threshold. Sanitary conditions are highly precarious, as are the roads and water and sanitation facilities.
The solution
With the Raoul Follereau Foundation, we work to improve these facilities and, therefore, avoid the population from being exposed to these types of diseases by:
- Providing systems to supply drinking water to community schools and health centres and restoring existing ones.
- Building six blocks of toilets and 20 handwashing stations in the Chiépo health centre.
- Equipping the health centre with an incinerator to dispose of biomedical waste.
- Strengthening the participation of children by forming health clubs in schools.
- Community training on best practices in using toilets and wash areas, and water and waste management.
- Organising an empowerment workshop for women and girls.
- Raising awareness in the community on gender roles and the role played by women in the WASH strategy and the fight against NTDs.
Impact
With these activities, we place value on the importance of sound water management, sanitation and hygiene.
Therefore, we will ensure that the Chiépo community is better prepared and has greater awareness to deal with infectious diseases, including leprosy and the Buruli ulcer, which affect primarily the child and female population.
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