NEWAH mostly works in
rural areas of Nepal. The main part of our work is to carry out community
projects to provide access to safe water to people in need. However, besides
community projects, we also carry out projects in local institutions such as
health facilities and schools to improve the WASH status there. Additionally,
NEWAH regularly carries out research to expand the sectorial knowledge and
optimize working approaches.
i.
Community WASH projects
We endeavor to provide access to
safe water especially to hard-to-reach communities. Our projects intend to
improve the living standard of the most vulnerable through access to water,
improved health and a better sanitation status of the community. Community WASH
projects need a relatively high budget, hence coordination with local
government and community people along with financial support of funding
agencies is crucial.
ii.
WASH in local institutions
The availability of proper WASH
facilities in local institutions such as schools and health institutions makes
life easier for students and visitors of health services. In schools it
decreases the number of absenteeism of girls during menstruation and decreases
the risk of disease. In health institutions it enables health workers to keep
an adequate hygienic status and protects vulnerable patients from the spread of
infectious diseases. NEWAH has worked in
more than 600 schools for construction of child, gender and disabled friendly
toilets with proper menstrual hygiene management facilities and therefore improved
the WASH status drastically.
iii.
Research activities
NEWAH carries out numerous activities
throughout the year. Research on the impact of our activities and the
documentation of lessons learnt deliver important contributions to the WASH
sector’s knowledge base. As there is lack of up-to-date information in the sector
and many research gaps in the context of Nepal this work needs to be addressed
and funded more effectively.