By BRIAN HATYOKA –
THE Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) is working with 287 chiefs across Zambia to stop the practice of open defecation in their chiefdoms to improve sanitation conditions.
CLTS national legal advisor Michael Musenga has said 23 chiefdoms in Zambia were completely free of open defecation as they had toilets and other sanitary facilities.
Mr Musenga, who is an environmental health officer and public prosecutor for environmental health said subjects in the chiefdoms were currently practising hand washing and covering their toilets with lids.
He said in an interview that the rural communities in the chiefdoms were also cleaning their pit latrines all the time.
The health centres, which were operating near chiefdoms where open defecation was not allowed, usually had a reduction in diarrhoea diseases and ultimately residents had to save money for other expenses besides medical bills.
“Open defecation is quite a challenge in Zambia but we are hopeful that the problem will be addressed with the coming of the CLTS.
“In chiefdoms where they don’t encourage open defecation, there is a reduction of diarrhoea diseases in nearby health centres,” he said.
Mr Musenga also noted that farms in the country were encouraging open defecation as they did not have pit latrines and other sanitation facilities.
“We are using the Public Health Act to enter into farms. Already, some farmers in Choma have agreed to build toilets and introduce hand washing facilities.
“We want to go to other villages where they have no toilets so that they build toilets and save money for other household expenses,” Mr Musenga said.