“We shall not defeat any of the infectious diseases that plague the developing world until we have also won the battle for safe drinking water, sanitation, and basic health care.” — Kofi Annan
Access to clean water is a fundamental human right.
Yet in many villages in the Savannah region of Ghana, thousands of poor people are still facing the daily challenge of accessing safe water sources, spending countless hours queuing or trekking long distances, and coping with the health impacts of using contaminated water.
Many people get sick or die every day because they are forced to use (drink) contaminated water. Diseases from unsafe water and lack of basic sanitation kill more people, especially children each year than all forms of violence, making this one of the most urgent health issues in Savannah region.
For the WASH sector, we aim to achieve significant and lasting improvements in the lives of the extreme poor through the establishment of a whole range of services including access to safe water, safe disposal of faeces, adoption of new hygiene behaviours, strengthening of school-based menstrual health and solid waste management, amongst others.
We therefore work to ensure equitable access to water in both quantity and quality, which prevents disease and sustains lives and livelihoods; reducing environmental health risks by managing sanitation safely and with dignity; and, involving women and men in managing water and sanitation resources and safe hygiene practices to maximize the benefits for their communities.
We improve sanitation coverage in schools and health facilities by working with school health clubs and sanitation advocacy groups to construct latrines, urinals and “tippy tap” hand washing facilities / stations, as well as establish safe water points.
Sustainability is at the forefront of what we do and we take a number of different approaches to ensure that local systems are strengthened throughout our work. We always make sure that the needs and preferences of the future users are taken into account and engage with all national WASH stakeholders (public and private) to secure the long-term future of these new services. Our teams have also established rigorous procedures to maintain the high quality of the infrastructure.
COMMDEF has built the capacities of teachers, children, and government officials to strengthen healthy water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) practices in schools and more adequate sexual and reproductive health (SRH) information and services. We have established more than 32 school health clubs in Central Gonja District to empower children (catch the young) to engage their parents, caregivers, authorities, and community members on hygiene promotion through WASH-themed play days, clean-up campaigns, and house-to-house visits.