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16-09-2010: My City is Dirty!
This has been one of the frequent complaints of the mayors of the four cities.
In the four municipalities, there is currently no structured sanitation department. In most cases one skilled and educated person is responsible for this task. Under this person, there is an average of 55 unskilled employees to perform duties and services such as waste collection, street sweeping, and emptying septic tanks, etc.
Furthermore, none of the municipalities have Integrated Sustainable Management plans for the sanitation sector, and much is done ad hoc without considering the negative long term environmental impact of these actions such as contaminating drinking water sources and the risk of spread of epidemic diseases like typhus and cholera.
The lack of adequate financial, material and human recourses do not make the task of solid and liquid waste management of the municipalities easy.
During the last two months working groups from the four municipalities composed of councilors and head of departments, which are relevant for the sanitation sector such as Urban Development and Environment, Transport, Finance and Administration, including Human Resources, Health and Education have been working together with Organizational Development Advisor, Troels Kolster. The aim of this work has been to make the political and technical leaders of the municipalities aware of the hazardous situation for environment and human health of the current attitudes and practices.
Then, an action plan involving the municipalities addressing technical, environmental, financial/economical, socio-cultural, organizational and legal aspects causing the many problems in the sanitation sector was elaborated.
The first phase of the plan consists of an assessment of the sanitation sector in the municipalities to get a precise image of the challenges and problems, and identify drivers and constraints for improvements, or as one of the councilors put it: “With the assistance of the Frisian project, we are now taking the first steps in the right direction. It will not be the steps of a baby wandering aimlessly around, but carefully, informed and planned steps aiming to improve the current precarious environmental situation”.
14-09-2010: The Deadliest Animal on the African Continent
Organizational Development Advisor, Troels Kolster had the unpleasant experience of being infected with malaria by a bite of the Anopheles mosquito, which is responsible for transmitting malaria in Africa.
It is estimated that Malaria on a global scale cause over one million deaths each year and account for up to 60% of hospital admissions in Africa; that's 6 out of 10 admissions! Children are especially vulnerable to malaria. In Africa, where 80% of malaria cases are treated at home, the disease kills one child in twenty before the age of five.
The good news is that most people living in malaria-prevalent areas have acquired some immunity to the disease. The bad news is that the prevalence of water and sanitation related diseases caused by lack of basic sanitation and safe drinking water, diminishes the ability of people’ immune system to keep a latent malaria infection at bay. The result is a high number of malaria cases who could have been avoided.
In the case of Troels, he was lucky that he had access to medical care and good living conditions so the recovery was quick, but most Mozambicans do not have access to quality medical care and lacks decent living conditions, including access to basic sanitation causing Malaria to constitute a major health risk.
13-09-2010: Frisian School Toilets Make Students and Teachers Proud
A public tender was prepared and launched by the municipalities of Xai-Xai and Chókwè with assistance from Technical Advisor, Fernando Namburete from the Frisian project, which envisages the construction of much needed public toilets. Currently, there are almost no public toilets in the four towns, and people are forced to satisfy their needs in the streets. In some areas of towns the smell is really bad, which significantly reduces the life quality of their populations.
The construction of adequate toilet facilities at eight public primary schools in Xai-Xai, seven in Chókwè, five in Maxixe and six in Inhambane was completed during the month of August, and several has already been inaugurated to the delight of the children and teachers, who are very proud of their new Frisian toilets. Suddenly having access to tap water, and being able to wash hands is regarded as luxurious, and the smiles on the faces of the children when using the facilities for the first time certainly testified to that fact.
Improved hygiene and reduced sick days as a result of the construction of toilet facilities and hygiene awareness training will not only have an effect in the schools, but also the parents of the children will benefit as they learn from their sons and daughters the importance of washing hands in order to stay healthy.
