Marking The Global Handwashing Day In Maridi
Action Africa Help International (AAH-I) in collaboration with the South Sudan Red Cross and Bread for the World, organized a handwashing campaign in Maridi, South Sudan. The campaign took place in 10 schools to mark the Handwashing Day, celebrated globally on 15 October 2018. The event gathered a total of 5,543 primary and secondary school students.
While at least 5 billion people use at least a basic sanitation service, over 340,000 children under 5 die annually from diarrheal diseases due to unsafe water, poor sanitation or hygiene.
As some communities in South Sudan have little to no awareness of good hygiene practices, access to further knowledge on water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) would save the lives of the thousands of people who die yearly from diseases related to sanitation and poor hygiene practices.
“Many households and educational facilities in Maridi County lack access to safe water sources because piped water supply is costly. Communities are forced to rely on unreliable sources, such as surface water and boreholes. The goal of this campaign is to increase awareness on hand sanitation and its role in preventing spread of diseases. Implementing this campaign in schools was essential as hygiene and sanitation awareness in schools lays ground for sustainable health outcomes,” said Maridi County WASH Director Emmanuel Edward.
Don Bosco Primary School student demonstrating proper hand washing
The event incorporated this year’s theme clean hands – a recipe for health and included various activities such as WASH information sessions and proper hand washing demonstrations. This initiative is part of AAH South Sudan’s Regional Primary Health Care project which focuses on addressing maternal and infant mortality through infrastructure development and strengthening of established government and community health structures and systems.
Committed to enhancing sustainable health outcomes, AAH-I has plans to establish school health clubs for primary and secondary schools in Amadi, Maridi and Yei River States of South Sudan. AAH-I’s WASH programmes focus on identifying key hygiene problems in order to provide appropriate and efficient solutions for communities.