Ada Oko-Williams - social cultural dynamics

Understanding Social Cultural Dynamics in West Africa;

Imperative for Sustainable Sanitation and Hygiene Programming

Ada Oko-Williams, WaterAid in Nigeria

Email: [email protected] Asia regional sanitation and hygiene practitioners workshop 2012 Dhaka, Bangladesh

www.wateraid.org

Timeyin Uwejamomere, Senior Policy Analyst (Urban), WaterAid Email: [email protected]

Timeyin Uwejamomere, Senior Policy Analyst (Urban), WaterAid Email: [email protected]

Timeyin Uwejamomere, Senior Policy Analyst (Urban), WaterAid Email: [email protected]

Content• Social Cultural context

• Addressing the challengesWaterAid (2011) Revitalising Community Led Total

Sanitation: A process guide.

• Some more work to do

• My Take Away from the Meeting

• Further Consideration

Social Cultural Context• Culturally diverse People, tribes,

Languages.• Sanitation is a private Matter• OD is Beneficial; A sign of Deference to

your benefactor• You get Gonorrhea, Syphilis and other

STI’s from latrine use.• Loss of Voodoo Powers• A “hole can not face a hole”• Loss of Voodoo Power

…Context• Cross Bar ‘Latrines’ in the Groves are Places for Decision making amongst Men

There are some Positives too• We Care for One another• Existing Community development

groups• Culture of Self help; Community

Initiatives• Religion is important

Addressing the Challenges• Rigorous Researchs and Evaluations of

our work• Pre Intervention exercise include Social

and Cultural Discussions• Trigger Tools are adapted to cultural

settings• Working with Local Institutions and

groups in Communities• Message and Communication focus a

lot on Dignity, Prestige and Religious Injunctions

Some More Challenges

• Local Embalmment practices of the Grebo tribe of Maryland County in Liberia.

• Amongst the Fulani’s in West Africa, Excreta is not found in the open but they have no latrines.

My Take Away • Disaggregated Poverty Profiling and

Parametres for Sanitation Policy Analysis• Sanitation Master Plan of the Gov’t of

NEPAL•Fecal Sludge Management … It is Coming we must prepare for it now!!!

Leave behinds• Spend Some more time on reflections &

learning about the approaches before moving on to another:• What works and what doesn’t.

• Drivers of Change are more often than not in the Community… find them.

NAGODE,