Communities Rewarded for Becoming Open-Defacation Free

MONROVIA – The Government of Liberia (GOL), alongside the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), officially launched a Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) strategy last weekend in order to promote ‘open defecation free’ communities in the country.
More than 15 communities in Liberia have been trying to obtain an ODF status; but at present, only three have met the requirements.

Those three communities – Sackie, Gbokolleh and Frank towns in Monsterrado County – were certificated by the Deputy Minister of Public Works, Johnson Gwaikolo, at the official launching of the program.

They also received tools such as wheelbarrows and shovels in order to promote development initiatives and reduce environmental pollution.

The strategy developed for the CLTS was launched on Saturday, January 23, in Gbokolleh Town, Careysburg District.

According to the strategy plan developed, the year 2010 has been declared as “national year of sanitation” in Liberia under the theme, “From the bush to the toilet house, communities decide for themselves!”

Gwaikolo said the ODF and CLTS statuses are accredited to the three communities for having embraced the idea and concept of living in a clean and healthy environment.

He also called on every community in Liberia to take the responsibility to help improve the sanitary and infrastructural conditions in their communities by starting the project so that those who want to help may be encouraged to assist.

In remarks at the function, UNICEF Resident Representative, Elizabeth Crowley, said that the initiatives of the three towns show that Liberia can achieve sanitation transformation to improve the health of children and families when the community itself decides to change.

She stressed the need for improvement in sanitation and hygiene to help curtail death caused by diarrhea among children.

“Thirteen out of 100 children born in Liberia die before they reach their fifth birthdays; this is not right. We know from UNICEF from all around the world that 18 percent of these are caused by diarrhea,” she asserted.

It is unacceptable, Crowley added, that one out of every 15 Liberian children die of diarrhea before they learn to read or speak properly.

“We know that situation can be improved by better sanitation, hygienic water supply and treatment of diarrhea.”