By David Kiarie (Originally published on Sep 26, 2013)
Pupils from One school of Tegeta in Dar es Salaam are a happy lot following the completion of a modern sanitation block at the school.
The toilets were constructed with funds from a volunteer at Art In Tanzania who saw the need for the school to have clean sanitation facilities.
The funds also saw the school connected with piped water by Dar es Salaam Water and Sanitation Company (DAWASCO), bringing to an end the problem of water shortage that the school had to contend with for a long period of time.
“We are glad the pupils now have clean toilets for both boys and girls and a reliable source of clean water that is safe for domestic use,” said the school head Obedi Rusumo.
Rusumo said although the school had been funded to put up a sanitation block, the administration minimized costs and saved enough money to buy a water storage tank and have piped water connected.
“We used to order between 200-300 litres of water daily which cost us between Tsh. 15,000-Tsh.20,000, about 10-13 US dollars. We no longer need the services of the water vendor and we can use the money we are saving for other purposes.
He further said that the ministry of education officials who paid a visit to the school that was facing closure due to poor sanitation have hailed the project and are now in the process of registering the education centre with the government.
“We appreciate the assistance from Carol Wood as a person and Art In Tanzania as an organization,” the head teacher also said that they now want to clear some balance with DAWASCO, put up a ceiling in the classrooms and improve the sporting facilities.
The school with six teachers has two levels of baby and middle classes with pupils age ranging from three and six years old.