“This community has been sidelined and forgotten,” says Igor, our resident expert in all things water and sanitation. “They are one of the most in need. What inspires me is to do the doable for them, to do what we can, today.”
This is our second day working in Kyangwali Refugee Settlement, in a community that, as Igor said, has largely been left behind. They live in a remote part of the settlement, along steep and bumpy roads. Sometimes services just don’t quite get there.
One of the lacking services? Sanitation that works.
“Normally the organizations running the settlement ask people to dig their own latrines,” said Igor. “They give people the materials to build them on their own. But in this case, it’s not coming.”
This community could build their own latrines with local materials, but just one problem – they don’t have any tools. When they fled from Congo, it’s not as if they came with shovels, wheelbarrows, or construction equipment.
This was something we could help with.
With Igor’s guidance, we went to town and picked out all the needed tools to construct latrines. Now, they’ll have these tools handy for latrine construction or whenever any other repair or construction jobs are needed.
“Sanitation is a huge issue in preventing disease and public health. Giving people some tools to build their own latrines or to do anything else they need puts them in a position of power. They don’t have to wait for anyone else to get it done.”
