Enhancing Community Health through Strengthening Local Capacities for improving the Quality of Drinking Water in Epworth

Client: Global Water Challenge

Duration: 2018 - 2019

Location: Epworth

In 2018, IWSD got funding from the Global Water Challenge in partnership with the Coca-Cola Foundation to implement a project in Epworth. The project sought to strengthen local capacities for improving water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) practices, focusing mainly on water quality, sanitation access and hygiene behavior.

Several processes were implemented as follows:

• Project introductory meetings with Epworth Local Board stakeholders.
• The Project Inception Dialogue carried out with Stakeholders.
• Open Space dialogue on water quality issues carried out with stakeholders and Open Space dialogue report produced.
• Project communique produced as part of project communication and knowledge management materials.
• Community water quality related challenges mapped and priority water, sanitation and hygiene issues identified.
• Beneficiary communities/project areas identified and incorporated in dialogue and training.
• Community representatives to coordinate the project activities at the local level selected and integrated into dialogues and training.
• Development of Training of Trainers Manual on Water Quality Management and training report produced.
• Training of community facilitators (training of trainers) conducted.
• Identification of communal water sources.
• Formation of Community Health Clubs (CHC).
• Production of Community water contamination early warning and risk management plans.
• Formation of School health Clubs (SHC)
• Production of School Water Booklet

The processes led to several notable results

• School Health Clubs are leading water management ensuring hygienic use of school borehole and tap and making early fault reports.
• The Open Space dialogue was a key vehicle in supporting target communities to engage and discuss the need of sustainable communal management of water.

Three key messages came out from the dialogues as follows:
•There is rampant water contamination in Epworth but
•There is very little knowledge on how to manage and maintain good water quality
•There is need for collective water management efforts

• The positive community response led to identification of water sources for development, formation of active CHCs and development of their early warning and risk water management plans for the identified water points