Addressing rural issues such as sanitation, soil fertility and hygiene can be challenging if interventions do not address the causes of the status qua of lifestyles of communities affected.
Interventions in such communities need not be hurried, but given a moderate span of time sufficient to enable an elaborate engagement with the community to be able to observe, inquire and make acceptable interventions with the aim of not only the community informing of ideal living practices and standards, but to provide the long lasting solutions to cater for behavior change both intellectually and physically.
An ideal case is the health and sanitation situation in Busia district in eastern Uganda, where the Rural Development Media Communication –RUDMEC together with the local government in Busia and other partners have made an impact in transforming the sanitation and hygiene practices of more than two hundred household members in Maduwa and Majamji sub-counties in Lumino county in Busia district and in Kampala Central in Katwe in Nabisalu and Nkere communities.
The project, Community Integrated Ecological Management project –CIEMP, in partnership with Friends of Lake Victoria programme-Osenala programme, with funding from Swedish International Development Assistance –SIDA, RUDMEC is promoting eco-san toilets and tree planting to revive the soil fertility levels in the affected communities due to soil erosion as a result of poor methods of soil conservation.
The project has incorporated a media awareness campaign through radio programmes to sensitize the wider community on best hygiene practices, sanitation and agro-forestry.
“In 2009, Majanji and Busia town council had the poorest latrine coverage standing at 40% for twenty five thousand people. However, there is an improvement bringing the percentage to 58% in 2011, which is progress made as a result of the project intervention,” says the district health officer.
Beneficiaries of the project confess that they have noticed a change in health status due to the project intervention.
"We have learnt how to manage tree nurseries and how to use eco-san latrines for domestic hygiene and how to plant trees in rocky areas”, says Bernard Wanyama a beneficiary from Majanji community.
“Eco san toilets have improved hygiene and sanitation and the manure is used as fertilizer in gardens,” adds Mariam Ajambo.
Properly planned and managed excreta can have a positive environmental impact as well as increasing agricultural yields. Solid and liquid wastes from human activities can be re-used as an option composted to give soil improvement as manure.
This is one of the reasons that compelled RUDMEC to engage the communities in Maduwa and Majanji in Busia district because the soil depletion rate was very high as a result of erosion, which run off drains in Lake Victoria.
Sarah Kisolo the project coordinator from RUDMEC says “When we were planning this project, we were informed by a report from Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning; the Uganda Bureau of Statistics report of 2008 to 2009 showed that soil fertility levels in Busia district were very low”.
She adds that “Framing therefore was tending towards swamps which support the lake and as such planting trees is one of the ways of managing soil erosion.”
She continues to explain that from the UBOS report and from Busia district reports, poor hygiene is recorded as high especially in landing sites, Busia town council and at the border points.
"Pollution of water is high in Busia due to open defecation and as such there is high level of prevalent diseases such as cholera, diahorrea and other water borne diseases. Human behavioural patterns are a key determinant in transmission of excreta-related diseases,” she says.
There was also lack of sufficient information to address issues of water and sanitation and the irresponsible cutting of trees for timber, fuel sold locally and to Kenya.
RUDMEC aims to empower communities with proper information and communication tools regarding water, hygiene and sanitation sector and works for behavioral change there by promoting the Millennium goal number seven (7).This is done through community trainings, construction of eco-san latrines, developing of tree nurseries, planting trees and through radio campaigns run weekly in local languages.
The project will in future train the project beneficiaries in making charcoal briquettes from sweet potato peelings to avoid excessive cutting of trees.
For hygiene behavioral changing intervention one may inquire what the eco-san toilet is and what is the benefit of the by-products of human waste.
Dr. Ssali Aloysius says that both urine and faecal matter can be reused as nightsoil, where faecal matter is separated from urine, diluted and used as fertilizer, and on the other hand humanure is human excreta composted together with food wastes and compounded to give a nutrient rich soil improver.Ecological sanitation (Eco-san), in which urine and faecal matter are separated can be a source of the dry wastes for composting into humanure.
“The construction of eco-san toilets has been a success in areas that are water logged and cannot allow unearthing latrines, in rocky areas and where there is high population”.
He says the toilets are built from the surface after a foundation is set up. The building is erected and has steps to raise the capacity to accommodate excreta which is later used as manure. Faecal materials go to another hole and urine also goes to another hole. The practice of using ash is the beginning point of decomposing the excreta to kill pathogens. One hand of ash, three cups of soil, soil helps in decomposition.
Manure is later used in the gardens and there should be care during application. Apply the urine after dilution of one litre of urine diluted with three liters of water. Beneficiaries respond positively to the eco-san toilet use saying the impact in farming is good, improvement on hygiene, no more smelling toilets,and increased yields for food security.
For every new intervention, there is a degree of learning. So, for first time users of eco-san toilets, Nakayima Rose from Maduwa community says “In my home we provide ash in a container and visitors have written instructions to ensure proper use of the toilet”.
Hassling in the ragging tides of climate change, communities have more challenges which do not only perturb them but also inserts much stress on the environment.
The district health officer in Busia says “There is a population explosion that is stressing the environment and health and sanitation facilities are not enough.” He adds that climate change due to degradation of the environment is leading to floods, prolonged drought that all have consequences on human livelihood.
Uganda joins Zambia, Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe and Kenya as some of the countries adopting the eco-san technology in Africa. (Source: http://www.rudmec.org/programs.asp)
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