Good, Decent Toilets for 49 families in Zimbabwe

Mrs Ndlovu, who is a beneficiary of both the LooLove projects, has had an extremely difficult last few years. The death of her husband in 2018 plus the tragic passing of her eldest daughter and son in law 2 years ago has left her alone and the only provider for her 4 grandchildren. She is an extremely hard working grandma (Gogo as they are called here in Zimbabwe) and has managed to fend for her little family by growing and selling vegetables as well as sewing clothing for sale and doing mending for people to earn a "dollar here and there".  She sews using a hand operated machine given to her by her mother who purchased it as new in 1961!!!!......it's 64 years old..... amazing.

The family registered for a latrine with the local village leadership and after consideration and vetting by AFCA they were one of 5 beneficiaries in Bunyonyweni Village to have a toilet built for them. Mrs Ndlovu was ecstatic when she recounted how she felt the day the building team arrived to start the building process. "It was my dream coming true," she gushed excitedly "and after only 5 days there it was in my yard as if it had always been there......I could not believe it."  She says it is so much safer now for the children with the new latrine only a few metres from their sleeping hut and that it is spacious enough inside for them to use it as a wash and bathing room as well so, "it takes care of two main daily problems that we used to have."

The team here at the American Foundation for Children with AIDS thanks you for supporting this project and the work we do for the children in Africa.  If you would like to learn even more about what we do or how you can meet some of the children you have helped, please contact Tanya Weaver at tweaver@AFCAids.org. 

In response to UNICEF's and WHO's Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Global Framework for Action (2024 - 2030) and the Zimbabwean Government's adoption of this initiative, AFCA began exploring ways that it could get involved at village community level to assist in the achievement of the safe sanitation for all by 2030 goal set out in the above framework.

We started this by carrying out a base line survey in the Matopos and Umzingwane Districts of Matabeleland South Province in Zimbabwe. We firstly interviewed community leaders to find out their thoughts on the topic regarding safe sanitation practices in their villages, but it was only after meeting with the Village Health Workers (VHW's) who form the Frontline of our rural health system that we began to grasp the enormity of the problem.  The VHW's conducted a survey for us and the data that they collected showed that approximately 52% of households in these Districts had zero access to or at best very primitive sanitation systems in place. This was astounding and we realized that something had to be done as a matter of urgency.

We then came up with the LooLove Project the focus of which is to provide clean and decent ablution facilities to HIV impacted families.  During 2023 we built 15 LooLove units, in 2024 21 units and our goal this year (in conjunction with AFCA Australia and other partners) is to complete 50 units.  The need is enormous and we have over 150 families on our waiting list going forward. In spite of 2 recent nationwide cholera outbreaks not one case has been recorded in our areas of operation and with your help we aim to keep it that way.

Our LooLove project has also provided much needed employment amongst builders, rural brick makers, local building materials suppliers  and even folk who offer donkey drawn cart transportation services thereby adding to the local business ecosystems.

Here is how a LooLove unit is constructed:

• a minimum 3 metre deep pit is excavated

• the pit is then lined with locally available granite rocks

• a box of locally made bricks is built around the pit

• a concrete slab is made and allowed to dry

• up go the walls 

• sometimes we get creative with recycling bottles for windows or decorations 

• the roof is put on and the walls inside and out are plastered 

• the unit is handed over to the beneficiary family

The team here at the American Foundation for Children with AIDS thanks you for supporting these projects and the work we do for the children in Africa.  If you would like to learn even more about what we do or how you can meet some of the children you have helped, please contact Tanya Weaver at tweaver@AFCAids.org.