The Society for Family Health (SFH) has provided hygiene education and improved access to safe water to over 40,000 individuals in Edo State through its Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) for Healthy Lives (W4HL) project.
Evelyn Orakwelu, SFH Representative in Edo, disclosed this on Wednesday in Benin while presenting an assessment of the project since its launch in 2022.
According to SFH, the W4HL project aims to transform water, sanitation, and hygiene behaviours in Edo State.
The organisation empowers communities and schools to embrace healthy water, sanitation, and hygiene practices to prevent diseases and foster a clean and safe future.
Highlighting the achievements at the conclusion of Phase III, Orakwelu stated that the intervention had reached 19,585 households across four local government areas.
“The project was implemented in Ovia South West, Esan West, Esan South East, and Etsako Central local government areas, focusing on house-to-house sensitization, stakeholder engagement, school WASH programs, and service delivery activation,” she explained.
The initiative, funded by multinational consumer goods corporation Procter & Gamble (P&G), has significantly increased the adoption of household water treatment methods.
“By using the company’s water purification sachets, individuals can treat contaminated water, reducing the risk of waterborne illnesses and improving overall well-being,” Orakwelu noted.
She further revealed that handwashing practices improved remarkably, with 88.4% of residents in Phase II areas adopting regular handwashing habits—an increase from the 76.1% recorded at the project’s baseline. Additionally, the initiative contributed to a reduction in open defecation, a major public health challenge in many rural communities.
“In our efforts to sustain WASH practices, we conducted over 1,000 school sessions to instill proper hygiene habits in children and activated 153 service delivery points within communities,” she added.
Dennis Abeyiuwa, Managing Director of SFH Access, emphasized the importance of clean water to public health and economic stability.
“Despite Edo’s abundant surface and underground water resources, inadequate water treatment and supply remain major challenges, contributing to the spread of waterborne diseases such as cholera,” Abeyiuwa stated.
Dr. Anthony Nwala, Assistant Chief Programme Delivery Officer of SFH, explained that Edo was chosen for the project due to its enabling environment and pressing water-related issues, including flooding, which impact public health.
“Over the past three years, SFH has successfully implemented impactful programs that have improved access to clean water, hygiene education, and sanitation services,” he said.