Amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, Emmanuel international Malawi, being a humanitarian organization, did not put down its tools. 1st July 2020 marked the onset of EI Malawi’s sanitation project in Machinga district, with an approximation of MK 85 million fund from MSH ONSE Health. Working in collaboration with government officials through DCT, specifically staff from ministry of health, EI Malawi established linkages with sub-district local and government committee structures such as VDCs, ADCs, AECs, VHWCs, CHAGs and Health Community Champions.
The main goal of the project was to increase access and utilization of improved sanitation facilities and services by targeted households and health facilities
This being a Milestone project (100% target completion requirement), by January 2021, EI Malawi had completed all its targets. The number of completed household latrines constructed that met government criteria for improved latrine had reached its initial target of 15000 under the MSH ONSE project, and the number of villages certified to be Open Defecation Free by government was 360, where Tradition Authority Sitola was the first to be certified as ODF by National sanitation and Hygiene technical Committee. Â In addition to this, the number of vulnerable people (elderly, disabled) in the district benefitting from USG-supported social services such as the Community Led Total Sanitation and San Mark interventions had reached 7482.
The clean clinic approach element of the project focused on improving the standards offered by Health care Workers, with an inclusion of health facility cleaners. During the initial stages of the project, meetings were held with representatives from the health facilities and standards were set. In the closing moment of the project, an analysis of on the level of implementation of the action plans in the targeted health centers indicated the total success of this element.
Under the water point sanitation element of the project, EI Malawi and the other stakeholders mobilized community members to improve water point sanitation at 109 targeted water points using various means such as filling of large stones at the borehole soak away pit and construction of French drains to increase surface area for waste water movement, thus increasing seepage which in-turn increases the period it would take for the borehole soak way pit to fill up. Water point committees were created and trained, cleaning schedules established and members were asked to start contributing money for waterpoint maintenance fund. Machinga has now a total of 109 revamped and clean waterpoints as a result of this project.
