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1. Why This Matters
Across Kitengela's rapidly growing peri urban settlements, more than 6 000 pupils attend class without reliable toilets, safe water, or a place to wash their hands. At Noonkopir Primary alone, over 1 300 children queue for ten ageing latrines; one cubicle may serve more than 100 learners, over three times the World Health Organization's standard. Girls often stay home during their menstrual cycles; waterborne diseases fuel absenteeism; teachers lose precious learning hours managing preventable illness. Clean water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) are not luxuries-they are the foundation of health, dignity, and uninterrupted education.
Needs Assessment Results
1. Student Population Overview
The needs assessment targeted six public primary schools in Kitengela Sub-County: Noonkopir, Utumishi, Likimani, Enkasiti, Prisons, and Snr. Chief Mutungei. The combined student population across these schools is 7,366 students, comprising 3,822 boys and 3,544 girls. The teaching staff includes 161 teachers (19 male and 142 female), highlighting a significant gender disparity in staff that may influence WASH sensitivity and supervision, particularly for girls.
Individual school populations vary, with Prisons Primary hosting the highest number (2,000 students) and Snr. Chief Mutungei the lowest (357 students). Girls make up approximately 45-48% of the population, which necessitates gender-sensitive planning in WASH infrastructure. The demographic distribution makes it clear that any WASH intervention must be tailored for scale and gender equity, particularly in supporting menstrual hygiene management and privacy needs.
2. WASH Needs and Gaps
All assessed schools exceed the Ministry of Education's WASH standards of 1 toilet per 20 girls and 1 toilet per 30 boys, with some schools like Utumishi having only 1 boy's toilet for 463 boys-an appalling ratio. Handwashing facilities are extremely limited, with two schools having none and others having dysfunctional or inadequate stations. Menstrual hygiene facilities are lacking across the board, with all schools using basic pit latrines without disposal bins or incinerators.
Toilet cleanliness ranged from fair to poor, with some facilities missing doors or visibly damaged. Even where flash toilets exist (Utumishi), they remain unused due to water shortages. These conditions severely affect dignity, attendance, and health, especially for adolescent girls, and require urgent infrastructure overhaul.
3. Water Access and Safety
Reliable, safe water remains elusive for most of the schools. While some have boreholes (e.g., Likimani, Chief Mutungei, Prisons), many are either broken (Enkasiti, Utumishi) or depend on expensive or unreliable sources like water vendors and neighbors' boreholes (e.g., Noonkopir). Only one school-Enkasiti-treats water before use through chlorination; the rest consume water directly from boreholes or tankers, posing serious health risks.
Although each school has at least 40,000-liter plastic storage tanks, the sustainability of water supply is questionable. The broken boreholes at Utumishi and Enkasiti especially require immediate repair to restore basic water supply and reactivate unused sanitation infrastructure.
4. Hygiene Education and Practices
While 75% of the schools reported integrating hygiene education into their curriculum, actual practice remains minimal. Observations found that handwashing with soap was active in only two schools, and many of the handwashing stations were either non-functional or missing altogether. Structured menstrual hygiene education is minimal, leaving girls ill-prepared and vulnerable.
To transform hygiene habits, training is required for teachers using Rotary's WASH education modules. Empowering students through WASH clubs, menstrual hygiene kits, and routine sensitization programs will ensure behavior change, particularly among upper primary pupils. Hygiene education is the low-cost, high-impact component that must accompany infrastructure and water interventions to yield lasting results.
Theory of Change
The SAFI WASH project envisions a healthier and more empowered school community in Kitengela through equitable access to safe water, improved sanitation, and sustainable hygiene practices. The Theory of Change begins with infrastructure-constructing durable toilets and handwashing facilities in four public schools. But infrastructure alone won't change behavior or health. Thus, the project simultaneously integrates behavior change communication, capacity-building of school management, and community ownership mechanisms.
Inputs: Rotary funding, technical expertise, county partnerships, community engagement, and trained facilitators.
Activities: Construction of toilets, installation of handwashing stations, hygiene training for students and teachers, formation of health clubs, and community sensitization.
Outputs: 40 new toilets in each of the selected 6 schools, Install Rain water harvesting gutters and 200,000lt concrete tanks in each school, trained hygiene champions, active WASH committees, and improved access to water and soap.
Outcomes (1-2 years): Increased school attendance (especially among girls), reduced diarrheal diseases, better hygiene behavior, empowered School Health Clubs.
Impact (3-5 years): Sustained hygiene culture, school-community collaboration on health and sanitation, reduced school dropout due to WASH-related illnesses, and replicable models for other sub-counties.
Sustainability Plan Summary (SAFI Kitengela WINS Project)
The SAFI Kitengela WINS Project embeds sustainability at its core to ensure long-term benefits of WASH investments in six public schools. The goal is to move from "project-based thinking" to "community-owned infrastructure." The sustainability strategy spans four interconnected pillars: institutional, financial, technical, and social.
1. Institutional Sustainability
Hygiene Curriculum: Hygiene education is integrated into the official school curriculum, with teachers trained to deliver content and reinforce daily habits.
Hygiene Clubs: Active student clubs are formed with annual leadership elections. These clubs promote peer-to-peer hygiene education and participate in monitoring WASH practices.
PTA Engagement: Parent-Teacher Associations form WASH Subcommittees to oversee maintenance, track usage, and flag emerging issues.
County Integration: The project aligns with County Education and Health plans to allow continued support post-implementation.
2. Financial Sustainability
Maintenance Fund: Schools will create WASH maintenance funds supported by modest parental contributions each term.
Local Partnerships: Collaborations with local businesses will ensure a steady supply of hygiene consumables like soap and sanitary pads.
Alumni Engagement: Former hygiene club members will be encouraged to contribute either by donating supplies or mentoring current students.
3. Technical Sustainability
Training of Staff: School custodians, teachers, and PTA members will be trained in maintenance and minor repairs.
Use of Local Artisans: Community masons and plumbers involved during construction will be retained as local service providers for ongoing technical support.
WASH Manuals: Illustrated, easy-to-understand guides will be left at each school for quick reference during maintenance.
4. Social Sustainability
Community Ownership: The wider community, including parents and students, are involved in planning, naming toilet blocks, painting murals, and monitoring facility cleanliness.
Girls' Advocacy: Menstrual hygiene is made a central theme in club activities, reducing stigma and boosting school retention among girls.
Visibility & Pride: By making the facilities visible symbols of community effort-with donor boards and student art-WASH facilities become valued and protected assets
MERL Summary - SAFI Kitengela WINS
• The MERL framework is designed to track both infrastructure quality and behavioral outcomes. It ensures continuous learning and adaptation throughout the project lifecycle and after handover.
• Progress will be monitored using both standard indicators (like absenteeism reduction and hygiene knowledge) and custom ones (like functionality of toilets and health club engagement).
• Key data will be collected regularly-monthly, termly, and annually-by a network of stakeholders including School WASH Committees, teachers, PTA representatives, and County Health and Education Officers.
• Rotary Club of Kitengela and the implementing NGO will lead oversight, with data being used to inform real-time decisions and adjustments.
• The MERL system will be community-embedded, with schools trained to manage their own hygiene records and report progress in PTA and County meetings.
• Sustainability of MERL is built in: after project handover, schools will continue tracking hygiene behavior, usage of WASH facilities, and cleanliness levels for 5 years.
• Annual WASH audits, peer-school learning forums, and digital dashboards will keep the system alive, ensuring that the infrastructure remains functional and the behavior change lasts.
MERL Summary Plan: 1-5 Years Post-Handover
• Purpose: To ensure the SAFI WASH Project continues to deliver impact beyond implementation by tracking outcomes, learning from progress, and enabling timely interventions.
📅 Year 1: Transition & System Setup
• Establish MERL dashboards in each school (Google Sheets, Excel, or physical logbooks).
• Train School WASH Committees, PTA, and select Board of Management members on data collection and reporting.
• Conduct baseline surveys on absenteeism, toilet usage, hygiene behavior, and facility status.
• Rotary Club of Kitengela leads quarterly site reviews and supports feedback sessions with all stakeholders.
• County Health and Education Officers validate data collection formats and endorse usage.
📅 Years 2-3: Embedding MERL into School Governance
• Quarterly reporting by schools to County offices and Rotary Club using agreed formats.
• PTA leads routine monitoring of cleanliness, supplies (e.g., soap), and water availability.
• WASH Committees conduct monthly reviews and coordinate maintenance with janitors.
• Rotary Club transitions into a mentorship role, offering on-demand support and linking schools with resources.
• End-of-Year reflection meetings held with school heads, BOM, PTA, Rotary, and County reps to review progress and adapt plans.
📅 Years 4-5: Sustaining and Scaling
• Schools fully own MERL systems with minimal external support.
• Annual school-based WASH audits conducted by the PTA and BOM, with reports submitted to County.
• Data from MERL informs PTA budget planning and advocacy for external support (e.g., soap donations, tank repairs).
• Rotary WASH Alumni or Health Club graduates support peer learning across schools.
• Rotary Club monitors outcomes bi-annually and documents lessons for replication in other regions.
Key Roles in MERL Sustainability
• ✅ Rotary Club of Kitengela: Provides technical support, conducts periodic monitoring, and facilitates knowledge sharing forums. Supports troubleshooting in schools for 3-5 years.
• ✅ Board of Management (BOM): Ensures MERL indicators are reviewed during termly board meetings. Oversees financial allocations for repairs and supplies.
• ✅ School PTA: Drives daily monitoring, hygiene promotion, and maintenance coordination. Ensures parental engagement and contributions to the WASH Maintenance Fund
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