A preliminary literature search retrieved more than 50 WASH in schools studies published from 2012 through March 2017. 19 of these were selected for the bibliography. Studies 1 and 5 discuss menstrual hygiene management and study 8 provides information on the life-cycle costs of WASH access in Kenyan schools.
Study 7 describes how children perform as “change agents” or hygiene teachers in Zambia. Other studies discuss health impacts and how WASH in schools affects attendance, gender parity, etc.
2017
1 – Reprod Health. 2017 Mar – Mapping the knowledge and understanding of menarche, menstrual hygiene and menstrual health among adolescent girls in low- and middle-income countries.
LMIC must recognize that lack of preparation, knowledge and poor practices surrounding menstruation are key impediments not only to girls’ education, but also to self-confidence and personal development. In addition to investment in private latrines with clean water for girls in both schools and communities, countries must consider how to improve the provision of knowledge and understanding and how to better respond to the needs of adolescent girls.
2 – Int J Hyg Environ Health. 2017 Feb – Improving water, sanitation, and hygiene in schools in Indonesia: A cross-sectional assessment on sustaining infrastructural and behavioral interventions.
Intervention schools were more likely to have handwashing stations with soap and water. In multivariable analyses, schools with a toilet operation and maintenance fund were more likely to have functional toilets. Students who learn hygiene skills from their teachers were less likely to defecate openly, more likely to share hygiene knowledge with their parents, and more likely to wash their hands. Survey data were comparable with government data, suggesting that Indonesian government monitoring may be a reliable source of data to measure progress on the SDGs. This research generates important policy and practice findings for scaling up and sustaining WASH in schools and may help improve WASH in schools programs in other low-resource contexts.
3 – Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2017 Jan – Water Quality, Sanitation, and Hygiene Conditions in Schools and Households in Dolakha and Ramechhap Districts, Nepal: Results from A Cross-Sectional Survey.
The presence of domestic animals roaming inside schoolchildren’s homes was significantly associated with drinking water contamination. Our findings call for an improvement of WASH conditions at the unit of school, households, and communities.
4 – Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2017 Jan – The Role of Adherence on the Impact of a School-Based Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Intervention in Mali.
These results indicate that a comprehensive WASH intervention and a focus on increasing adherence may help maximize the health effects of school WASH programs, but that WASH alone might not be sufficient to decrease pupils’ absenteeism.
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“The ABC of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) improvement in schools” in India by the the Urban Management Centre is a handbook developed under the Ahmedabad Sanitation Action Lab (ASAL), a three year action research program.
Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) are essential for preventing and managing diseases including neglected tropical diseases (NTD) which affect over 1 billion people among the poorest communities.
Sanitation Updates 