Socio-economic wellbeing
Christine Aledohan, Zé commun, Benín
Three years ago Christine Aledohan built a latrine that not only improved her life, but also that of her community.
Christine Aledohan is fifty years old and has five children, the eldest 27, the youngest 15. She lives in the Zè commune in Benin, an area with a high rate of NTDs.
Three years ago, she built a family latrine in her home after attending activities to raise awareness of NTD prevention in her community. Christine didn’t take much convincing because she immediately noticed the advantages of having a toilet at home.
Christine Aledohan
Since then, her life has changed for the better: the environment is healthier, and she has more privacy and is safer than when she had to defecate outside — she no longer has to go to the forest and endure the fear of being exposed to wild animals and to the threat of sexual violence on the way.
People in her community also use the latrine, meaning the general situation in the community has improved. The healthiness of the environment has resulted in a reduction of diarrhoea and infectious diseases such as Buruli ulcer.