Safe & Secure Toilet for females in Sindh-pakistan

Pak Mission Society – GlobalGiving Report

 Name of organization - Pak Mission Society

 Donor – GlobalGiving

 Legal status

• Registration act XXI of 1860 KPK Reg: # 477/5/5417
• Economic Affairs Division - Islamabad
• Permission from Deputy Commissioner Sindh
• District Health Officer Sindh
• Local Administration Sindh

 Project Activity:   Safe & Secure Toilet for females in Sindh-Pakistan # 60958

Target Union Councils of Khairpur District:

• Kot Diji
• Shadi Shaheed
• Kharrirah

Reporting Period

September to December 15, 2023

Title of Report:   Safe & Secure Toilet for Females in Sindh – Pakistan # 60958

About Pak Mission Society:

Pak Mission Society (PMS) is a national relief and development organization established in 2004 and registered on 13th February 2008 under the Societies’ Registration act XXI of 1860 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, and signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Economic Affairs Division (EAD), Government of Pakistan in November 2017.  PMS was founded by a group of Christian professionals whose collective vision is to bring hope and love by responding to human sufferings and disasters through emergency relief efforts and delivering long-term rehabilitation and development programme.  Ever since, PMS is serving unreached and underprivileged communities in impoverished areas regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, class, religion and social background.

Executive Summary:

In the middle of 2023, the pre-monsoon season further aggravated the run-down situation of the flood-hit communities in Khairpur, which were badly impacted by the 2022 flash floods.  An estimated 33 million people have been affected, with 7.9 million displaced. The torrential rains in the Nara mountains of Khairpur caused serious damage to life and property. According to UNICEF, more than three million children needed rehabilitation assistance and face increased risk of malnutrition. In flood-affected areas, 30% of water systems got damaged, which further increased the risk of disease outbreaks with people resorting to open defecation and drinking unsafe water.   PMS has conducted a Need Assessment of WASH infrastructure in target UCs in Khairpur and plans to focus on personal hygiene awareness-raising sessions to enhance women's and girls’ dignity and also provide or rebuild toilets for the most vulnerable households.

Project Objective:

• To assess the needs of target beneficiaries prior to providing material support for safe and secure 500 toilets in flood-hit areas.
• To understand health and hygiene concerns, and enhance self-awareness, hygiene practices among the women folks impacted due to flood.  

Implementation Methodology:

This digital questionnaire was finalized, approved, and deployed after its proper testing, checking the skip patterns, and data security by the MEAL team. Data was collected according to the shared field plan on finalized agreed digital tools using the Kobo toolbox's latest version. A team of 6 enumerators, consisting of 02 males and 04 females, was hired for data collection. The field team's activities were supervised by the MEAL (Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning) Manager, for conclusive final report. This structured approach ensured accurate and reliable data collection as well as quality control measures being implemented throughout the process.

The respondents were based on gender, with 64% female and 36% male; indicates a significant representation of women. Regarding marital status, the data shows that 85% of respondents are married. A smaller proportion, 3%, falls under the "Single" category, representing those who are unmarried or not in a committed relationship. Notably, 12% of respondents are categorized as "Widow(er)," suggesting a noteworthy presence of individuals who have lost their spouses.  These findings provide insights into both gender composition and marital status distribution among the surveyed population, with potential implications for understanding marital dynamics. " In terms of why latrines are utilized, privacy emerges as a significant motivator, with 85% of households highlighting its importance.

Activity:

The most recent activity covered the Need Assessment of target UCs in the Khairpur district of Sindh – Pakistan.   The Need Assessment data provides information about hygiene practices, both in terms of personal care and cleanliness of environments. We know that households perceive their hygiene as unsatisfactory, with 88% expressing this sentiment.  Similarly, domestic hygiene is also reported as unsatisfactory by 89% of households. Hence, safe and secure toilets have been noted as practical solution, that will contain or eliminate open defecation. Moreover, the perception that the village is not clean from debris 88% of households highlights potential issues with waste management and environmental cleanliness.  In the FDGs and interviews PMS assured the community for number of other interventions which may increase their livelihoods and promote clean environment. There is an emergency for dignified sanitation practices. Other reasons include preventing diseases, fear of insects and snakes, and the convenience of proximity to home. These motivations collectively emphasize the multifaceted nature of sanitation behavior, encompassing health concerns, comfort, and practicality. The harmful effects of open defecation are acknowledged, with 59% of households recognizing that it leads to the spread of diseases. This underscores the community's awareness of the health risks associated with inadequate sanitation practices. Additionally, concerns are raised about increasing mosquito populations, potential harm to animals, and land pollution due to open defecation. Keeping in view the geographic positioning of the area, it is crucial to engage communities in Disaster Risk Reduction-DRR Interventions to prepare them for future interventions along with Safe and secure Toilets for females.

The proposed activities are as follows:

• Formation and Capacity-building of Village Development Committees
• Selection of most needy beneficiaries’ especially women headed households
• Specific attention and inclusion of disable beneficiaries        

Challenges:

There's a massive need for toilet construction and it was hard to select the most vulnerable households.  

The Lesson Learned:

• We need to promote improved sanitation facilities; including pit latrines with slabs and handwashing facilities.
• Encourage households to construct and use latrines properly to prevent open defecation.
• Implement a Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) approach to promote community-wide sanitation improvements, for behavioral change to end open defecation.
• The project team should focus on topics such as handwashing, safe water storage, and proper waste disposal during the conduction of health and hygiene awareness campaigns in targeted villages.
• Raise awareness about Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS) and its role in managing dehydration caused by diseases like diarrhea.
• Form WASH committees through the VDCs, and train community leaders or volunteers to serve as peer educators who can share information about health and hygiene practices with their peers and neighbors.

Co-ordination with Government:

PMS has established long-standing goodwill and working relationships with the district administration and health departments at the provincial and district levels. Moreover, the designated officials are consulted and coordinated in terms of the selection of target areas to avoid duplications and proper inclusion of the most deserving beneficiaries.

Co-ordination with other Projects:

Since the onset of floods in 2022 the livable environment in the low-lying areas in Southern Pakistan deteriorated due to stagnant water, infrastructure damages, lack of resources, and stark poverty at the grassroots level.   In the most critical time of emergency since the floods 2022 PMS has been one of the sought-after national NGOs, which generated its resources to support flood-hit households by providing food-ration packages, construction of shelters and toilets, medical care, women's dignity and hygiene, water tinkering, and non-food items in Sindh, Pakistan.  PMS is fortunate to share its on-ground resources of other projects and staff assigned for rehabilitation projects in Sindh to support Safe and secure Toilets for females in Sindh on a complimentary basis to contain overheads.