Daniel Truneh, the Team Leader for SNV Awassa, holding the award certificate.
On 5th May 2010, the community of Galeto was declared an Open Defecation Free Zone. The move followed a Community Led Total Sanitation campaign, organised by SNV Ethiopia water and sanitation advisers and local authorities. SNV Ethiopia advisers trained officers from the local bureau of health and sanitation and local capacity builders in the area on various sanitation issues.
The Open Defecation Free Zone was a culmination of the good work that had been carried out by the community of Galeto. The day was celebrated with much pomp and colour, during a ceremony presided over by the Head of the Regional Health Bureau, Ato Karre Chawicha, senior officials from the region and representatives from UNICEF and other organisations. During the celebration, SNV Ethiopia was awarded a certificate of recognition for introducing a creative and innovation approach to change entrenched institutional, professional and personal behaviour, attitudes and mindsets. People from the community staged poems, songs and plays to raise awareness on proper sanitation practices. SNV’s work was much appreciated by the residents of Galeto. One community member said, “I have gained from reduced health expenditure, less time spent seeking treatment for my family and myself, more days worked and more strength for work”.
Prior to the Community Led Total Sanitation, open defecation was quite common in Galeto. Government attempts to stop this practice did not yield any sustained positive results. People constructed latrines to please the authorities and to escape punishment. Other than the dignity and privacy offered by using a latrine, members of the community also mentioned the health benefits that.
Neighbouring villages have felt positively challenged by the example set by Galeto. Some have embarked on latrine construction even without going through the Community Led Total Sanitation trigger. The Galeto story has become a source of inspiration to many!
Many partners that were initially skeptical about the Community Led Total Sanitation approach have started to embrace the initiative as they are now convinced that it holds the key to sanitation improvement, scaling up at the community level and attaining the MDG on sanitation. There is a growing movement amongst NGOs and development agencies such as UNICEF, government line Ministries of Health and Ministry of Water Resources, local authorities and leaders (including school children) to create open defecation free zones.