Date/Time
Date(s) - 18/11/2015 - 19/11/2015
0 h 00 min

Location
Boyo Division

Categories


The link between education and health cannot be over emphasized. When schools lack access to access to clean and safe pit toilets the ability for school children to remain in school and learn is jeopardized, they often fall sick and miss school days hence their poor academic performance. The fact is that 2.5 billion (1 in 3) people worldwide don’t have access to a safe, clean and private toilet and most of them live in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia according to WHO. Over 1800 children a day die from diarrhea disease due to lack of safe water, sanitation and basic hygiene. Many deaths related from severe diarrhea today kills a child in every 20 seconds making it the second most deathly disease in developing countries claiming lives more that HIV/AIDs, malaria and measles combined
In 2010, I founded HOPE for Children Cameroon, with one goal of educating every child, one school, one village at a time. This was as a result of my experiences after visiting some communities in my village in 2008 to carry out a study on the prevalence of malaria among children of school going age. I came across malnourished children most of who were not in school and learning. Their basic rights rights had being violated, exploited and they felt desolated. Most of them children were mostly orphans and some living with a form of disability. Since 2010, we have provided tuition assistance to over 300 children and over 500 children have benefitted from school supplies in 3 different communities we work in. However, in the course of our work, we realized that most children were falling sick while most girls stayed home because most schools lacked safe and clean pit toilets. Even when we asked these kids how they felt about the state of their toilet they were so happy and enjoyed using it. To address this health challenge we embarked on the construction of 3 clean and safe pit toilets in 3 primary schools which is currently serving over 1000 school children and has drastically eliminated the practice of open defecation hence ensuring that the health and immediate learning environment of these children is secured and safe.
Early this year our organization identified 2 more schools in dire need of a toilet and they currently under construction. The overall impact this has had on the communities, the children, their education and self esteem has been tremendous especially to the girls. Girls now can feel safe in schools, the practice of open defecation completely eliminated and school absenteeism from ill related causes dramatically reduced. 

Education is the only investment we can give to women and girls. It’s very critical to ensure that girls can attend school and receive quality basic education. They must stay in school and complete their education and governments must ensure that conditions are created where girls and young women are safe, healthy, educated and fully empowered to realize their potential to transform their families, communities, economies and their societies.
This World Toilet Day we are hosting a fundraising campaign to help bring sanitation into schools in need! You can contribute here.