Ahetaha Water Conservation gives WASH Bottleneck Analysis training

BY SAMIE WAIKORI

AHETAHA Water Conservation Association (AWCA) has successfully completed a two-day training on Village and Community WASH Bottleneck Analysis Manual for 12 communities in East Are Are.

The training happened at Ahetaha conservation village from December 26-27, 2022 at Manawai and about 27 participants (representatives) from Foulofo, Waima’aka, Kanata, Moosi, Su’u, Manawai, Ahetaha, Raeao, Nariaoa, Anopo’u, Airoke and Aarahau communities attended training. 

The objective of the project or campaign is to train rural communities particularly women and girls to proactively implement WASH Bottle Neck Analysis (BNA) in eight selected villages and to raise awareness on the barriers and WASH BNA for Ahetaha community members residing around Manawai Harbour.

According to Eddie Hikau Huitarau, ACWA founder and mentor, the training was part of a project funded by SPC through PPAC and ACWA as grantee to seek and address burden of having BottleNeck (BN) and barriers with basic WASH facilities in the rural villages of Solomon Islands.

Thus, he said the project seeks to empower rural women to gain skills and knowledge to enable them to carryout BNA baseline findings around four communities in the area.

Adding that this is to identify data to support WASH Project proposal application in order to reduce family poor hygiene and other family WASH needs in the communities. 

With regards to the project, he said AWCA identifies there were women who can take the lead and the initiative to bring about change in their own communities.

“With the right direction and motivation, these women themselves can bring about the changes that we wish to see in the households and eventually the community,” Huitarau said.

He said this WASH BNA has five main components and for the purpose of this project activity it is referred to as “Standards”.

Standard 1 is the village WASH management – this means that each village will have a system for managing WASH development and maintenance

Standard 2 is the sanitation – the sanitation should be seen as; sufficient, accessible, private, clean, secure and culturally have appropriate toilets provided for all women and girls.

Standard 3 is the water supply – sufficient water is available at all times for drinking, food preparation, personal hygiene, cleaning and laundry, and is safe for the purpose intended.

Standard 4 is the water facilities & access – sufficient water collection points and water use facilities are available in the community to allow convenient access to, and use of water for drinking, food preparation, personal hygiene, cleaning and laundry.

Standard 5 is the correct use and maintenance of water supply and sanitation facilities.

Huitarau said this is to ensure through sustained hygiene promotion. And communities of Aiaisi ward 19 should see and use WASH facilities as resources for improved hygiene behaviours.

He said each standards have its own indicators with three rating colours; red-which means barava nogud, orange-means lelebet gud and green-means barava gud and this shows that it meets healthy and national WASH standards.

Huitarau said the project or campaign is well aligned with the key message “Promoting rural women and girls to take lead in WASH BNA survey in Aiaisi ward 19”.

He said the WASH BNA training manual was designed by AWCA.

“We are at least trying to give to ward 19 and East Are’Are Constituency in whatever resources that is available to us.

“Thus, let’s identify the issues and the needs of EAC and rank them into priorities with evidence to convince potential funder,” Huitarau said. 

He said the training was facilitated by himself with other local facilitators include Clifton To’otalau, James Singi and Peter Kenieroa.

Huitarau also said other supporting topics covered during the training included;

  1. Good Leadership and Governance.
  2. Developing good mindset, and how to conduct a meeting that really works at the community.

He said under this manual training will provide a summary of WASH BNA baseline findings for communities in Ward 19 AIAISI.

Huitarau said the key target audience for this report are community leadership of AIAISI ward, Aiaisi Ward Development Committee (WDC), East Are’Are Constituency office and AWCA for reporting and project proposal purposes.

He said copy of the report is to be shared with the leadership of communities taken part in the survey.

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