Pupils, teachers share pit-latrine at Mbale City school
Pupils ease themselves in pit-latrines at a school in Uganda. Most government schools have such facilities in a sorry state. PHOTO/FILE
What you need to know:
- Mr Joseph Byassi, a health worker in the area, said during break and lunch hours, the pupils form thick queues at the pit-latrine, and there is no specific order on which gender accesses the facility first
Parents and local leaders in Mbale City have decried the poor sanitary conditions at Busajjabwankuba Primary School where both the teachers and pupils share a pit-latrine.
The parents and the leaders say this infringes on the teachers’ and pupils’ right to privacy.
The school, with enrolment of 1,400 pupils and 22 teachers, has a five stance pit-latrine, which was constructed by government at the end of the Financial Year 2006/2007 using the Schools Facility Grant.
The pit-latrine is now at risk of collapsing due cracks.
Daily Monitor learned that the government constructed the pit-latrine after the two existing that the school had earlier collapsed.
Mr Joseph Byassi, a health worker in the area, said during break and lunch hours, the pupils form thick queues at the pit-latrine, and there is no specific order on which gender accesses the facility first.
“It is very surprising that both female and male pupils, including teachers, share the facility which has broken doors and windows and is almost filled up. These people risk contracting sanitation-related diseases, ”Mr Byassi, said.
He said the lack of enough sanitary facilities, as well as classrooms, has affected the school’s performance and led to increased school dropouts.
“According to government guidelines, staff and pupils, boys and girls are supposed to use different lavatories but that is not the case at our school,” Mr Byassi said.
The school head teacher, Ms Emima Ndagire, said they have no option but to share the single pit-latrine with pupils.
“The same pit-latrine we are using is at risk of collapsing since it has developed cracks,” Ms Ndagire said.
She said they have written to the city education officials on numerous occasions but they have not received any positive feedback.
“We also have inadequate classrooms and desks, and we lack a fence at the school. Thugs enter and disrupt learning,” she said during a parents’ meeting at the school yesterday.
Ms Betty Mbaga, the chairperson of the School Management Committee (SMC), said the lack of enough pit-latrines and classroom structures has put the lives of the learners at risk.
“The school has, unfortunately, become a dumping ground for neighbouring residents, who resort to defecating in polythene bags and throw them in the premises,” Ms Mbaga said.
Security issue
Mr Were Yahya, the Mbale Northern City Division deputy Resident City Commissioner (RCC), who presided over the meeting, said he would engage relevant stakeholders so that the crisis is solved.
The RCC, who also heads the security in the division, ordered the local leaders to convene security meetings and devise resolutions to combat the rising crime rate in the community.
“I am going to engage with the mayor to see that they put a fence and another latrine at the school,” he said.
Ms Harriet Namataka, a parent, blamed the increasing school dropout at the school on the lack of sanitary facilities and classrooms.
“The poor state of the school has forced several learners to drop out of school. You find a Primary Three pupil copying notes of a Primary Five pupil because they are sharing classes,” Ms Namataka said.
