How health and hygiene go hand in hand with education
- 10 years ago
As we all know, prevention is better than a cure. So to tackle the problems caused by bad hygiene and sanitation, plus a lack of health awareness, various projects are doing their best to help people learn how to protect themselves.
No-one would like their children to go to a school with no proper sanitation. But in Tanzania many schools do not have proper facilities, resulting in health problems and high drop-out rates. So UNICEF, in collaboration with the state, is providing lavatories along with lessons on staying healthy
In Tanzania nearly five children die every hour due to poor hygiene conditions, according to UNICEF. Inadequate water supply and sanitation facilities are not only a health issue but also affect school attendance and educational performance.
The rapid increase in primary school enrollment since the abolition of school fees for primary education in 2002 has put a heavy burden on existing school infrastructures. National data shows that on average there is only one pit latrine for every 56 children in Tanzania’s primary schools.
“We have a lot of challenges like the lack of adequate toilets, whereby 1,028 students use six toilets, three for boys and three for girls and also water which we have to hand pump because water supply from the tap is very unreliable,” said Ally Mzamilu, the head teacher at Kibugumu School, in the Kigamboni neighbourhood of Dar es Salaam.
Five years ago, 80 percent of schools lacked functioning hand-washing facilities, and virtually none had any soap available. Children in such schools also face increased risks, including diarrhoea, cholera, worms, and urinary infections.
UNICEF, in collaboration with the Tanzanian government, has introduced pilot WASH programmes to 100 schools around the country.
“Wash services are very important, especially in schools, because children will learn better if the school environment is good,” UNICEF’s John Mfungo told euronews.
These programmes follow the National School WASH Guidelines and are promoting good sanitation and hygiene practices to over 70,000 children.
“The school environment is so much better due to the introduction of the project and it has also helped in reducing school absenteeism, the children really enjoy school now. This is partly because we have increased the number of toilets from nine to 29. The toilets are clean and we have been taught how to maintain the project;” said Kassim Dellow, a teacher at Mgulani School, in the Temeke district of Dar es Salaam.
Children can be the most effective advocates for social and behavioural change. The WASH programme includes the establishment of hygiene and sanitation clubs. They encourage pupils to pass on life-saving sanitation and hygiene practices to family members and others.
“At home where I live not everyone studies here, so I talk to my friends, relatives and neighbours educating them on how to prevent the spread of diseases,” said one of the students, Gloria.
Many adolescent girls are reluctant to continue their schooling because toilet and washing facilities are not private, unsafe or simply not available. UNICEF has supported distribution of a booklet with basic information about their age, menstruation and hygiene issues to over 50,000 girls in Tanzania.
The Missing Link in Indian development
In some under-developed parts of northern India some people live a three hour walk from their nearest healthcare centre. That is not only a problem when there is an emergency, but it means that getting accurate advice is difficult too. So a new phone application providing information on healthcare is proving a lifeline, particularly for women.
Of every 1,000 babies born alive in India each year, a shocking 44 die before they turn one year old. This alarming but avoidable statistic is mainly due to a lack of access to healthcare for pregnant women and adolescent girls, especially in remote and poor areas.
In the district of Mewat, just under 100 kms from the capital city of New Delhi, the situation is far from healthy. For over 50 percent of the population the nearest medical centre is between 30 minutes to three hours away, on foot. But harnessing the widespread reach of mobile phone networks, ZMQ’s MIRA channel project is trying to remedy that.
“Our first strategy was to design good quality mobile phone communication strategies so that people could start getting information in their hands – they carry their health communication tools in their hands. The second step would be to provide them with tools to manage their own health and the third step would be to connect them to the service provisioning system of the country,” said ZMQ’s boss Subhi Quraishi.
A team of trained social workers under the MIRA channel project goes door-to-door. The phone application uses iconic language with limited audio text support and provides previously inaccessible information on reproductive health, infant care and family planning, now literally at their fingertips.
No-one would like their children to go to a school with no proper sanitation. But in Tanzania many schools do not have proper facilities, resulting in health problems and high drop-out rates. So UNICEF, in collaboration with the state, is providing lavatories along with lessons on staying healthy
In Tanzania nearly five children die every hour due to poor hygiene conditions, according to UNICEF. Inadequate water supply and sanitation facilities are not only a health issue but also affect school attendance and educational performance.
The rapid increase in primary school enrollment since the abolition of school fees for primary education in 2002 has put a heavy burden on existing school infrastructures. National data shows that on average there is only one pit latrine for every 56 children in Tanzania’s primary schools.
“We have a lot of challenges like the lack of adequate toilets, whereby 1,028 students use six toilets, three for boys and three for girls and also water which we have to hand pump because water supply from the tap is very unreliable,” said Ally Mzamilu, the head teacher at Kibugumu School, in the Kigamboni neighbourhood of Dar es Salaam.
Five years ago, 80 percent of schools lacked functioning hand-washing facilities, and virtually none had any soap available. Children in such schools also face increased risks, including diarrhoea, cholera, worms, and urinary infections.
UNICEF, in collaboration with the Tanzanian government, has introduced pilot WASH programmes to 100 schools around the country.
“Wash services are very important, especially in schools, because children will learn better if the school environment is good,” UNICEF’s John Mfungo told euronews.
These programmes follow the National School WASH Guidelines and are promoting good sanitation and hygiene practices to over 70,000 children.
“The school environment is so much better due to the introduction of the project and it has also helped in reducing school absenteeism, the children really enjoy school now. This is partly because we have increased the number of toilets from nine to 29. The toilets are clean and we have been taught how to maintain the project;” said Kassim Dellow, a teacher at Mgulani School, in the Temeke district of Dar es Salaam.
Children can be the most effective advocates for social and behavioural change. The WASH programme includes the establishment of hygiene and sanitation clubs. They encourage pupils to pass on life-saving sanitation and hygiene practices to family members and others.
“At home where I live not everyone studies here, so I talk to my friends, relatives and neighbours educating them on how to prevent the spread of diseases,” said one of the students, Gloria.
Many adolescent girls are reluctant to continue their schooling because toilet and washing facilities are not private, unsafe or simply not available. UNICEF has supported distribution of a booklet with basic information about their age, menstruation and hygiene issues to over 50,000 girls in Tanzania.
The Missing Link in Indian development
In some under-developed parts of northern India some people live a three hour walk from their nearest healthcare centre. That is not only a problem when there is an emergency, but it means that getting accurate advice is difficult too. So a new phone application providing information on healthcare is proving a lifeline, particularly for women.
Of every 1,000 babies born alive in India each year, a shocking 44 die before they turn one year old. This alarming but avoidable statistic is mainly due to a lack of access to healthcare for pregnant women and adolescent girls, especially in remote and poor areas.
In the district of Mewat, just under 100 kms from the capital city of New Delhi, the situation is far from healthy. For over 50 percent of the population the nearest medical centre is between 30 minutes to three hours away, on foot. But harnessing the widespread reach of mobile phone networks, ZMQ’s MIRA channel project is trying to remedy that.
“Our first strategy was to design good quality mobile phone communication strategies so that people could start getting information in their hands – they carry their health communication tools in their hands. The second step would be to provide them with tools to manage their own health and the third step would be to connect them to the service provisioning system of the country,” said ZMQ’s boss Subhi Quraishi.
A team of trained social workers under the MIRA channel project goes door-to-door. The phone application uses iconic language with limited audio text support and provides previously inaccessible information on reproductive health, infant care and family planning, now literally at their fingertips.