Clean Water = Healthy Communities

Thanks to Friendly Soap's generous support, we have implemented a range of water, sanitation and hygiene projects.

Hygiene Work

Here at Just a Drop, we recognise that gaining access to safe, clean water is only part of the solution to improve the health of communities. Without accompanying hygiene training and facilities, poor sanitation and waterborne diseases continue to increase. The burden of this high rate in illness often falls on women and girls who are forced to care for sick relatives instead of earning an income or attending school. That is why along with the construction of sustainable water and sanitation structures, our projects include crucial hygiene work.

Students at Ndumbi Secondary School in Kenya learning about soap making.

COVID-19 Response

As the pandemic continues to cause devastating impacts to many of the communities we work with across the world, we have continued to develop our COVID-19 response work. This has included both installing hygiene facilities and providing Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) training.
In India we supported 2,000 people through our COVID-19 appeal project, which included training in COVID-19 prevention through good hygiene practices and the distribution of PPE.

In Cambodia, Kenya, Nicaragua, Uganda and Zambia we continued to incorporate COVID-19 awareness into our WASH training. We also conducted soap making workshops to support handwashing and COVID-19 prevention while also providing an income.

In Ndumbi and Ngunini Schools in Kenya we installed six handwashing stations to support good hand hygiene.

"It has increased our knowledge on hygiene and sanitation and COVID-19. The training on how to make liquid soap will enable us to have quality affordable soap and generate an income from the sale of the surplus soap.”

- Rose, a Self Help Group member reflecting on the WASH Training and soap making classes

 

Members of the Wendo Wa Mwau Self Help Group, Kenya, during WASH training

Menstrual Health and Hygiene

We now provide Menstrual Health and Hygiene (MHH) training in all of our countries. Our trainings include education on the menstrual cycle and good menstrual hygiene, and some projects include demonstrations on how to make reusable pads. This, alongside providing gender sensitive latrines and water facilities in schools, allows girls to manage their menstrual cycle with dignity and get an education.
In Tara Primary School, Zambia, work is underway to conduct MHH training and reusable pad provision for 50 girls. In Uganda at Nyada Primary School, we provided training to 172 students, both boys and girls.

Students at Nasse Primary School, Uganda, with the reusable pads made by the entrepreneur group.

We are delighted to report that during a recent trip to Nyada, Nasse, Norah and Saayi Primary Schools, Uganda, the students were keen to tell us about the difference that MHH training and reusable sanitary pads have made to their lives. Teenage pregnancies soared during the long lockdown, and a lack of sanitary pads often forced girls into dangerous situations to obtain them.

Thanks to MHH training and access to pads, the girls have been able to make their own choices, manage their periods and stay in school.

Without your support none of this vital work would have been possible so from all of us here at Just a Drop, Thank you.

Every Friendly Soap website order generates a 10p donation to Just A Drop.