Building life-saving latrines

Volunteer sanitation engineer Sani Meijakai at work making a slab for one of the community's new latrines.

Credit: WaterAid / Suzanne Porter

Sani Meijakai is all too aware of the importance of good sanitation. The 40 year old father of six has tragically lost a five children to diseases he know could be avoided if his community used toilets.

He lives in the remote rural village of Ladin Kani in the Jigawa state of Nigeria in a community of 4,300 people who don't have any latrines.

As a result, everybody has to go to the toilet in the open, with disastrous impacts on the villagers' health. Despite there being a safe water supply, diarrhoeal diseases are rife throughout the community as they are quickly spread by the human waste left lying around from open defecation. 

Sani's family is by no means unusual having lost so many children to sanitation-related diseases. Babies and toddlers are particularly vulnerable to infection so the child mortality rate in the village is high.

Now Sani is taking action to stop any more needless deaths. With funding from WaterAid he was trained by the local government waste unit as a sanitation engineer and is now helping his neighbours to build pit latrines so they can safely dispose of human waste.

Bilki Ibrahim, a volunteer hygiene promoter in Ladin Kani.

Credit: WaterAid / Suzanne Porter

"I volunteered to help stop the open defecation happening within the community as this is a cause of disease and sickness in the village. Five of my children died from high fever and diarrhoea and my six children are still getting sick. This is why I have volunteered and I am happy to improve my community's health.", said Sani.

Sani's role is to cast the concrete slabs that are fitted to the top of the pit latrines. Each family digs their own pit, then the pit is lined and fitted with the slabs at the top. The materials are partly paid for by WaterAid, with each household contributing the balance.

To date, 45 latrines are under construction. But other members of the voluntary water and sanitation committee formed by WaterAid are actively encouraging the remaining 160 households to follow suit by running hygiene promotion sessions explaining the link between poor hygiene and disease.

Thirty five year old mother of four Bilki Ibrahim is one of the volunteer hygiene promoters, who discusses the benefits of building latrines with other women in the village. The benefits will include more dignity and personal security, as well as a reduction in disease as Bilki explains: 

"I am looking forward to getting a latrine. It is bad now, especially for women. We go at night for privacy, otherwise we have to walk very far. At night there is a danger from animals or snakes. Also, the women do not like to go alone because sometimes men follow them to rob them."