Advocacy and Public Awareness – The role of WASH CSOs/Media in Liberia
…Focus on Sanitation-Media Perspective –By: Augustine N. Myers-WASH R&E – Advocacy and public awareness in the WASH sector of Liberia started as far back as 2008/9. At the time, the issue of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) was a strange phenomenon and as such it was not considered to be relevant.
A makeshift (goalpost) toilet on the Mesurado river with huge pile of garbage
The involvement of individuals of civil society organizations and the media could not be over emphasized, as there was a need to ensure advocacy and public awareness for WASH.
Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) later began a topical issue due to the robust role of CSOs/Media in the WASH sector.
The role of WASH CSOs/Media in Liberia has been significant and successful in the areas of advocating for increased budgetary allocation for WASH, raising the voices of the poor, excluded, marginalized, and people living with disabilities, among others across the country.
Burning of dirt due to long stay of garbage in Red-light
The role played by CSOs/Media through Advocacy and Public Awareness has also help to address the issue of fragmentation and governance in the WASH sector of Liberia, through the signing of the WASH Compact by former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the holding of the first WASH Board Meeting and the establishment of the WASH Commission, among others.
WASH CSOs/Media are still carrying out major advocacy and public awareness activities for the appointment of WASH Commissioners.
Access to improved WASH by locals and sustainability of WASH facilities also form part of Advocacy and Public Awareness, as part of the role of WASH CSOs/Media in Liberia.
Now, with all of the efforts of WASH CSOs/Media, government and development partners, there still seem to be more efforts needed to ensure access to WASH, as sanitation is the least considered.
According the Global Health Observatory on Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) in 2012, 89% of the world’s population had some improved water supply, while 64% had access to basic sanitation facilities, Liberia.
—Challenges of Poor Sanitation in Monrovia
Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) is a basic human right. Every person should have access to a toilet, regardless of where they happen to be borne.
According to the Joint Monitoring Program (JMP) based on 2011 data, access to improved sanitation is just 18% nationally, with 7% in rural areas and 30% in urban areas, and open defecation rate 44%.
Twelve percent of the population in Liberia uses un-improved (often traditional) latrines and 26% of the population share toilets with their community members.
Stock piles of dirt in Jacob Town, Paynesville
Despite several efforts on the part of the government of Liberia, development partners and WASH Civil society actors, sanitation still remainsa challenge for the city of Monrovia and its environs.
Stock piles of garbage can be seen all around the city thus costing potential health threats to residents.
The underprivileged in our society, especially residents who are residing in slum communities are the most challenged when it comes to poor sanitation.
As part of its activities under WaterAid Exclusive Sanitation Reportage, WASH Media has been taking a critical look at the prevailing sanitation condition in Monrovia and its environs.
All over the city sanitation huddles continue to confront several citizens in the capital and its environment.
Conditions in most of the communities and areas along the streets where this garbageare dispose are very much unfavorable and unhygienic for the residents.
Like in west Point Community, a municipality hard hit by sea erosion in recent times is facing serious sanitation crisis.
Many of the residents are now using the beach to defecate due to the huge damage caused by sea erosion.
For residents of Slip Way and Doe Communities, the conditions are the same.
Burning of dirt due to long stay of garbage on the Old Road
Some of the residents inform WASH Journalists that there is nowhere decent to defecate, especially for females in their respective communities.
The residents informed WASH R&E that goal post toilet on the river sideis one of the best options designed by community residents to defecate.
Residents of Old Road-Mandingo Grave Yard and Gaye Town areas also faced serious sanitation crises as well.
The residents also told WASH Media the timely removal and burning of garbage is posing serious health problem to the community.
The residents of these communities are appealing to agencies of government responsible to ensure that a firm work is put in place to find solution to the problem.
The huge stock pile of garbage can have beenseen at the Gardnersville Market, New Georgia Junction, Chicken Soup Factory Community, LPRC Junction andthe Steven Tolbert Estate Junction.
Residents and marketers residing and selling in these locations have informed the WASH Media that the condition experienced by them due to the over stay of the garbage is unbearable and poses health threats to them.
In Gardnerville General Market, marketers informed WASH Reporters that the dirt at their location had been there for the past 4 months with little or no efforts on the part of contractors to remove it.
Most of the marketerssaid they often get sick dueto the unpleasant stench from garbage for some time before returning to sell.
The marketers revealed that they are not the only ones using the site, but community residents are also dumping dirt there too.
On the other, hand petit business people selling around the Liberia Refining Company (LPRC) Junction said the condition is getting worst by the day at the junction they transact business activities.
The petit traders said most of their customers are refusing to transact business with them due to the poor environment they find themselves.
These factors have created a serious sanitation huddles in Monrovia and other areas where the project is beingimplemented with Monrovia City Corporation and the Paynesville City Corporation playing intervention roles.
Stock piles of dirt on the Old Road, Sinkor, Paynesville
These challenges over the years have turned into serious sanitation huddles for communities, marketers, motorists and pedestrians with serious health problems looming due to unhygienic environment caused by the garbage.
Despite the intervention of partners with the aim of keepingMonrovia clean under the Emergency Monrovia Urban Sanitation (EMUS) Project at present is facing huge challenges ranging from timely removal of dirt; break down of contractor’svehicles to inaccessible road at the landfill at the Whein Town site.
All of these efforts on the part of partners and the government of Liberia have proven futile due to the lack of a robust system and frame work to clean garbage.
The million-dollarquestion that comes to mindis what becomes of the solidwaste sector when partners funding is exhausted.
What is very much obvious is that the problem faced by residents in line with sanitation will certainly exacerbate if nothing tangibly is done to address the looming sanitation crisis in Monrovia and other communities across the country.
