ASDP Nau

Fair Access to Clean Water, Hygiene and Sanitation via Community Mobilization in Northern Tajikistan

The project is financially supported by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and is carried out in cooperation with Women in Europe for a Common Future (WECF), the Netherlands.

The given project aims to provide a fair access to a pure drinking water and assists in building safe sanitary hygienic conditions in the target communities of the Sogd region of the Republic of Tajikistan through:

1) Increasing the awareness level of communities in the sphere of sanitation and hygiene: applying the alternative approaches in community mobilization: PHAST & BEHAVIOR (informing, mobilization, planning, trainings, exchange visits);
2) Implementing a number of infrastructural projects on modifying the sanitary situation through introduction of alternative technologies (ecological sanitation, in particular, ecotoilets with a urine separation mechanism) as well as the projects on providing a pure drinking water;
3) Dissemination of experience on applying new technologies and promotion of approaches based on community participation in solving the problems with regard to sanitation and access to safe water at the local, regional and national levels.

Within the framework of the project in 2008 there were reconstructed 7 water supply systems in the target areas. Now 18490 people have an access to safe drinking water and there were built 3 school ecotoilets for 1428 school children, adults and teachers. There were provided trainings on PHAST methodology for women and children. The trainings gave an opportunity for communities to understand the interconnection between the behavior of community’s members and the diseases spread in this community. This will further change the traditional behavior of the community as one of the main reasons for a high level of illness, lack of good quality water and poor environment. In 2009 year ASDP Nau is planning to build 10 dry urine diverting toilets in households and 1 school toilet in Ganchy district. Demoplots will be implemented in schools in order to show the use of compost and urine as a fertilizer. All schools in rural districts of Tajikistan are not connected to the centralized system. These schools use outdoor toilets, pit latrines. Only some of them which are in the centre of the region have toilets inside but they are out of order [do not function].
School toilets are in general in a shocking condition. In rural areas schools have pit latrines, which are in general extremely bad-smelling without any hygiene. There is neiher soap nor toilet paper or water to wash hands after using the toilet and even the doors are absent there. Because of the bad conditions of the school toilets, girls cannot use them. The toilets do not meet any sanitation standard. Schoolgirls do not use the school toilet throughout the day and come home after school and go to toilet at home. This fact has negative effect on girls’ health who will have to give birth to children in the future.

There is no water supply system in the village schools either; they use water from pools and springs. It must be highlighted that the depth of underground water in Spitamen region ranges from 4m - 17 meters and it is the dangerous source of some infection diseases. The ground water is polluted by human and animal waste and fertilizers. The promotion and construction of dry urine diverting toilets is one of the best and available ways of solution to the ground water pollution problem.

The awareness level of rural communities in the sphere of sanitation and hygiene is very low. Therefore, it is very important to train the rural communities in order to create a sustainable process. The project plans to train local citizens and constructers to construct, operate and maintain an ecosan toilet, and to use safely compost and urine in the agriculture as a fertilizer.

The local population, authorities and schools will be involved into project implementation. School children, teachers, villagers will be educated on the safe sanitation, water protection, hygiene and health, and will be actively monitoring drinking water quality on nitrates (the special indicator of water pollution ) in their region. The target house holds will be trained on maintenance and operation of the dry toilets, and to develop organic waste composting programs, allowing improved agricultural activities in their fields.

The articles about case studies and project implementation have been published in the local and regional mass media.