Summary
The toilet block of Kiboha Primary School had caved in and could no longer be used. 430 pupils started using the 2 staff toilets or retreated to the nearby bushes. There were concerns about privacy, bad behaviour and the government that required all schools to have proper latrines at the start of the 2021 academic year. NGO network KANCA made an inventory of the problem and the solution, together with all stakeholders. A committee for resource mobilisation was formed and successfully involved both the parents and the community at large. When together they managed to buy the building materials, the district government constructed a new toilet block for both boys and girls.
Problem analysis
The pit latrine at Kiboha Primary School had curved in, leaving 430 pupils with no choice but to share the latrines with the teaching staff. This created competition; students would line up to use the facility and others would use the nearby bushes. The staff switched to using the latrines of neighbours as a way of avoiding to compete with learners for the same latrines.
In light of the above, the boys and girls started sharing the same facility, which raised concerns about privacy for the learners but also the impending bad behaviour that could crop up as a result of sharing the facilities.
The learners were also using the long queues as an excuse to miss lessons.
Finally, government was not allowing schools to stay open without latrines.
Solution analysis
Construction of pit latrine stances for both boys and girls.
Stakeholder analysis
Which stakeholders (NGO’s, government, private sector) did you identify as allies and how did you involve them?
- School Management Committee
- Parents Teacher Association
- Local Council of Mugusu Town Council
- Parents
KANCA engaged all stakeholders mentioned in fireplace conversations to table the magnitude of the issue.
The community members involved tasked their leaders to develop the bills of quantities for constructing another latrine.
How did you involve your beneficiaries in the stakeholder analysis/campaign?
School: teachers, pupils
They were engaged in fact finding during the meeting.
Short description of the organisation implementing the action/campaign
Kabarole NGO/CBO Association (KANCA) is a network of NGOs/CBOs currently operating in Kabarole District, Fort Portal Tourism City and Bunyangabu District. It was formed to secure, consolidate and expand operational space for NGOs and enhances the capacity of the sector to influence governance and development processes.
KANCA envisions a vibrant and sustainable network of civil society organisations delivering quality services to an empowered community and it's mission is to strengthen member organisations (MOs) to deliver quality services to the community through information sharing, research documentation, advocacy and networking.
KANCA leads a Community of Practice (CoP) on Livelihood, Education, Accountability, COVID 19 impact and recovery, with members from Tooro (KANCA), TESO (Public Affairs Centre), Acholi (Gulu NGO Forum) and Ankole (WACSOF).
Objectives
1. To construct a pit latrine at the school
2. To improve the sanitation at the school
3. To ignite the culture of giving in the community
Action results
1. A Committee was formed to mobilise resources to construct a latrine.
2. A bill of quantities was developed for the construction of the latrine.
3. This brought hope to the people and the children who noted that the community is thinking about the school and is part of the school.
4. Reactivated School Management and PTA engagement.
5. The District provided a latrine for the school.
Description of preparatory activities
1. Data collection to assess and analyse the problem. This was through community meetings that revealed the problem of the school and its effects.
2. Meeting with different stakeholders: community leaders, School Management Committee, community members organised by KANCA to table the magnitude of the issue.
3. Community members tasked the leaders to work with the school administration and organise school management committee meetings to discuss the issue.
Description of implementation
1. The leaders held a meeting with the school head teacher and agreed to organise a meeting with management committees and parents to seek for their views on the proposal for them to contribute towards the latrine construction.
2. A committee for resource mobilisation was formed.
3. They advocated for community members to contribute; pledges were made by community members amounting to 429,000 shs.
4. PTA meetings were held and parents agreed to contribute 10,000 shs each.
Costs
Meetings costs: 460,000 UGX
* Invitations to stakeholders
* Refreshments
* Transport refund for community leaders
* Fact finding
Follow up
A site visit at Kiboha Primary School was done after all the engagements with the different stakeholders. It revealed that materials for construction had been purchased by the mobilisation committee.
The site visit also revealed that the Kabarole district Local Government had constructed a 4 stance latrine at 24 million since it was a requirement for all schools to have functional toilets at the beginning of the 2021 academic year.
