Hygiene and sanitation behavior change efforts in vulnerable communities of western Nepal

Finnish-Nepali government bilateral development co-operation project RWSSP-WN (Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Project in Western Nepal) has been implemented since 2008 in 51 VDC´s (Village Development Committees) of nine districts.  Hygiene and sanitation is one of the project components and the project decided to pilot an approach "Community Led Total Behavior Change (TBC) in Hygiene and Sanitation" CLTBCHS in these VDC´s. In this approach local bodies are facilitated and local people are trained to ignite and trigger people to build toilets and change their hygienic behaviour with Small Doable Actions (SDA). Nine Districts, 51 VDCs and 553 community level structures and systems have been mobilized/established for the purpose. In total 6300 triggers (49% female) have been trained out of the population of 330,000 in 56,000 households in the project VDC´s. During the year and a half (January 2010 to June 2011) during which this approach has been implemented, 18,168 households have constructed toilets on their own without subsidy according to their capacity. A total of 66 VDC´s (32 program VDCs plus 34 neighbouring VDCs) were declared Open Defecation Free and started Small Doable Actions in hygienic practices (SDAs) serving 253,794 people. As a result, it is assumed that the hygiene and sanitation situation within the project working area has greatly improved. The lessons learnt from this approach can be replicated in other parts of Nepal to increase sanitation coverage from the current 43% of the 26.6 million people in the nation (MPPW, 2010). [authors abstract ]

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