Building of public toilets and educational campaign against open air defecation in Old Ningo, Ghana

Ahwiam quarter, Old Ningo town, Prampram district, Ghana

In collaboration with

Mujeres por África

October 2016 – October 2017

We improved the toilets and provided training on hygiene and maintenance of the facilities.

Objectives

  • Improve the conditions of access to water and sanitation in the community and build new collective toilets.
  • Train in good hygiene practices and the dangers derived from open defecation.
  • Empower women in water sanitation and toilet maintenance.
  • Promote a participatory process in decision-making.

Beneficiaries

5.000 direct
500 women and 3.000 children under 15

10.000 indirect
1.000 women and 6.000 children under 15
Inhabitants of Old Ningo Township in Prampram District.

Project image

On the ground

Insufficient sanitation infrastructure network and high rate of open defecation.

The community of Ahwiam, included in the Ningo Prampram district in Ghana, has a population of 5.000 people, where 90% of the households lack a bathroom, thus needing to use a precarious and insufficient network of toilets.

During the second semester of 2015, a previous study was carried out on the population in Ahwiamun by means of a survey. Most of the survey respondents (55.7%) declared that they defecate in open air.

Open air defecation is a major problem in the community, with important consequences for health, especially among the most vulnerable population groups.

The existing network of public toilets is insufficient both in numbers and in quality, being in a deplorable state of conservation.

In detail

The new toilet blocks that have been recently built are closed as their maintenance is not organised.

The urban structure of the town and the opinion of the inhabitants indicate that the solution for the basic sanitation is the building of public toilets and communal pits. It is necessary to educate the population so that it may acquire healthy hygiene habits.

Aseos Ghana 2