By Benjamin Mensah
Accra, Feb 25, GNA – More than 18,000 residents from 10 communities in the Jasikan Municipality of the Oti Region are to benefit from Plan International Ghana’s Integrated Package for Sustainable Development (IPADEV) project.
The project, with funding support from the German National Office, is aimed at supporting some non-governmental organisations in the water sector to deliver Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) messages and engage the private sector in the promotion of appropriate household latrine technologies.
It would also organise hygiene promotion campaigns, support the Environmental Health and Sanitation Directorate, and collaborate with the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources for the effective implementation of the project in the communities.
The 10 beneficiary communities are Koesim, Ketsi Nkwanta, Atwereboana, Atonkor, Akaa, Asele, Lekanti, Nanankor, Udey, and Dzoku.
Aside from the 18,668 people, an estimated 36,000 community members will benefit indirectly from the project.
Mr William Domapielle, the Project Coordinator, Integrated Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, Plan International Ghana, explained the expected benefits in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Accra after the official launch at Jasikan.
He said the initiative sought to contribute to creating a resilient and protective environment for children, especially girls, through equitable access to WASH, Early Childhood Care and Development education, health facilities, and services by January 2026.
It is also to contribute to creating a resilient and protective environment both at home and at school for better health and learning outcomes.
Some key activities to be implemented under the IPADEV project are the construction of water facilities (hand pumps, mechanised systems, pipe extensions) in the 10 communities and the construction of 10 girl-friendly institutional ultramodern toilets.
Others are the implementation of Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) in all 10 project communities, and the development of an SMS platform for monitoring the functionality of water systems for vulnerable households to help them construct and own improved latrines.
“There is also a component for conducting menstrual hygiene education in targeted schools and communities as well as provision of reusable sanitary pads to schoolgirls,” Mr Domapielle said.
“We expect that at the end of the IPADEV project, residents in the selected communities will have improved access, and utilisation of safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene.”
GNA