Asutifi North District Assembly (ANDA) together with IRC has on Tuesday 7, June launched the District Sanitation and Hygiene Services for Communities’ Project.
The event seeks to mobilize stakeholders' support for smooth delivery of the project and encourage their buy-in and ownership form part of plans under the ANAM WASH Initiative to strengthen local systems to deliver sanitation and hygiene services for all by 2030 as envisaged by the Sustainable Development Goal 6.
Addressing the gathering on the purpose of the event, the Country Director for IRC, Mrs. Vida Duti charged participants to support the vision.
“You all here should crusade behind the project so the objectives behind the initiative will be achieved for all to witness”, she said.
Latter-Day Saints Charities (LDSC) in 2020 joined the ANAM initiative by supporting the expansion of WASH services to schools, Healthcare facilities, and hard-to-reach communities to improve WASH services and infrastructure management for the sustenance of facilities serving over 3000 people in schools and hard to reach communities.
Based on the success, LDSC has approved a renewal grant of USD $300,000.00 through IRC for ANAM WASH partners to further increase access to sanitation and hygiene services in five (5) schools, two (2) healthcare facilities, and twenty-five (25) rural communities and sixty households.
It also seeks to build the capacity of district officials and sub-district representatives in managing and maintaining WASH facilities as well as facilitating engagements with Civil Society Organizations (CSO’s) to organize Behavior Change Communication (BCC) campaigns in communities, schools, and healthcare facilities.
Sananhene of Kenyasi No. 1, Nana Anim Dankwa who chaired the program questioned stakeholders, “DCE and his management with the support of IRC and other partners have brought this to us, what are we doing to help ensure that their vision is materialized?”
“SDC for example should come and liaise with the Assembly, look at their masterplan and find where you fit in. You have the money. It might be fixing little ponds on our neighborhood roads and others”, he added.
Present at the program were representatives of the various Traditional Councils, Sustainable Development Committees(SDC’s), District Assembly, CSO’s, various ANAM WASH partners, Assembly members, Disability groups, heads of healthcare facilities, Schools heads, and pupils.
ANDA, IRC, World Vision, Safe Water Network, Aquaya, Netcentric Campaigns, Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC) and Later-Day Saints Charities (LDSC) are partners of the ANAM WASH Initiative.