IEC FOR TOTAL SANITATION CAMPAIGN

by | Aug 11, 2021 | Uncategorized

Introduction

Efforts to provide safe drinking water and sanitation to rural people have not brought desired result despite good intention, manpower, technical support and resources. Eighty per cent of the diseases afflicting mankind are either water-borne or excreta-related.

Lack of awareness among the communities on the storage, handling and consumption of safe drinking water, and the low priority accorded to sanitation have aggravated the problem of safe drinking water and proper sanitation.

Community participation has been passive in nature, as a result of which there is a problem of sustainability of water and sanitation programme. Often the development practitioners felt that people are not informed about the consequences of poor sanitation. While most members of the community appreciate the problem and implication of unhygienic situation but fail to practise the desired behaviour which neither requires   fund nor sophisticated technology. Therefore, it is not only the issue of information and imparting knowledge rather it is a problem of change in behaviour for desired sanitation practices. Systematic designed strategy can bring desired social change through IEC campaign. The IEC Programme was launched in 1996, with the aim to educate the public and create awareness among them regarding safe drinking water and proper sanitation.

Information education and communication (IEC) combines strategies, approaches and methods that enable individuals, families, groups, organization and communities to play active role in achieving, protecting and sustaining their own health. Embodied in IEC is the process of learning  that empowers people to make decision ,modify behaviours and change social conditions.Activites are developed based upon needs assessments. Sound educational principles, and periodic evaluation using a clear set of goals and objectives.

 

Background

For one of the most densely populated subcontinents in the world, India has the lowest sanitation coverage. A comprehensive strategy for promoting sanitation in rural areas of Indian states was first developed during the International Water Supply and Sanitation Decade (1980-’90).The  percentage of rural households with a toilet in their own premises at the beginning of the decade was less than five per cent.

  • Lack of awareness among the communities on the storage, handling and consumption of safe drinking water, and the low priority accorded to sanitation.
  • Community participation in the ARWSP has been passive in nature, as a result of which there is a problem of O & M of the water source.
  • Eighty per cent of the diseases afflicting mankind are either water-borne or excreta-related.
  • The majority in rural areas continue the age-old practice of indiscriminate open defecation, which poses a serious threat to the sources of drinking water in the community.
  • Centuries-old beliefs and customs reinforce the practice of open defecation in disregard of its impact on the environment and the health of children, family and Community.
  • The safe disposal of solid and liquid waste is not accorded priority at either the family or community level.
  • There is no planned effort in rural schools to inculcate good hygienic habits in children.
  • People have not come forward to join any sanitation-related movement is because it lacks social prestige.
  • An equally important reason is that the construction of latrines involves a monetary expense. People would prefer to utilise their money to satisfy other felt needs, such as consumer goods.

A shared vision for change

A National policy also supports creating an enabling environment to encourage increased access to sanitation services. National policies can serve as a key stimulus for local action. Recognizing the need for cross approaches to sanitation and hygiene, the policy process will support an accelerated programme and involve clear delineation of roles and responsibilities of all involved institutions at various levels towards a common goal.

Objectives Of Iec Strategy :

The objectives of IEC (Information, Education and Communication) strategy are well-known and well-defined. They include:

  • To immediately put an end to indiscriminate open defecation by creating a felt-need among households for construction of individual latrines;
  • To create consciousness about the need for safe disposal of children’s excreta;
  • To ensure sustainability of drinking water systems and sources;
  • To tackle the problem of water quality in affected habitations;
  • To institutionalise the reform initiative in rural drinking water supply sector;
  • To create awareness about the proper storage, handling and consumption of safe drinking water;
  • To create consciousness about personal hygiene, especially hand-washing after defecation, and before cooking/eating food;
  • To create awareness about   Arsenic caused by ground water pollution.
  • To create consciousness among rural school children about all aspects of sanitation and its practice;
  • To create awareness in the community about the sanitary aspects of water supply, including keeping the water source neat and clean, safe disposal of waste water and solid waste;
  • To create a sense of participation in the community so that the people are, involved in the water and sanitation programme from the pre-planning stage to execution;
  • To create a sense of competitiveness among individuals and families on sanitation levels, through social marketing;
  • To create a sense of willingness to pay in the community, for the creation of common & household assets, and their O & M;
  • To prepare motivators within the community, and make all sections of society conscious of their duty to promote sanitation & safe drinking water;
  • To cause a permanent change in people’s behaviour with regard to sanitation and handling of safe drinking water;
  • To protect all drinking water sources from faecal pollution;
  • To empower women;
  • To reduce infant mortality and morbidity through improved sanitation;
  • To promote low-cost, location-specific appropriate technologies;
  • To encourage the establishment of production centres and deli very outlets like RSM ;
  • To encourage participation of voluntary agencies at the community, block and district level;
  • To facilitate participatory planning and development through Panchayati Raj Institutions;
  • To institutionalise the concepts of sanitation & safe drinking water within the community, to be passed on: from generation to generation like other social customs.

 

Strategy:

  1. From pilot/ demonstration projects or segmented approach to scale.
  2. 65 districts in 12 states would be taken up for intensive awareness campaign in first year (1995-96).
  3. From the conventional health education approach to social marketing approach.
  4. Promotion of household latrine as a prestigious product, with emphasis on ‘prestige’, ‘status’, ‘privacy’ and ‘convenience’ (targeted principally at women).
  5. School sanitation to be integral part of strategy for total sanitation in community.
  6. Health education aspect to be introduced into community through schools/anganwadis.
  7. Creation of felt-need for construction of sanitary latrines in households covered under CRSP and non-RSP.
  8. To involve all sections of society, from bottom-up to top-down, for people’s movement to change popular perceptions about sanitation and drinking water, and bring about a permanent behavior change at community level.

Campaign Plan To Be Conducted In Stages:

  • Initial emphasis on putting an end to indiscriminate open defecation by motivating towards construction of household latrines of different designs and types/location-specific/ affordable/acceptable.
  • Emphasis on personal hygiene (washing hands) and storage, handling & consumption of safe drinking water.
  • Emphasis on proper use of sanitary latrines by all members of family, including children.
    Emphasis on all other aspects of sanitation (1.2), its linkage with health and benefit, individual, family & community.

Activites:

    1. Designing and developing IEC material

Development of communication IEC for sanitation and hygiene requires a

tested and proven delivery mechanism, which can ensure contacts with

household on regular basis.

 

Focus Group discussion with family

Since behaviour often have to be negotiated with families and individuals agreeing to comply with   those they choose to be ‘doable’.

Orientation of motivation

The presence of Self  Initiated Community Organisation (SICO) motivators, mobilizers or hygiene educators who reside in those communities.

Orientation of Opinion Mobiliser

Respected individuals with credibility setting examples have proven to be good motivators;young women and men with ability to establish good rapport have been successful communicators .

Network

A vast network of such communicators,with tools for interpersonal and group communication and creative methods to be supported by block.district and state units that respond with matching supply units.

Supply chain

Household toilets  hardware,waste,disposal designs and hardware ,trained masons,school and anganwadi toilet arrangement,baseline and repeat surveys,microplanning and monitoring.

Supply chain mechanism that could cater to the increased demand by providing the necessary hardware and ancillary services.

Workshop

Holding of workshops and public meetings.

Involve school

Striving to achieve the objective of providing safe drinkinmg water,sanitation and hygiene facilites in school.

Orientation of ICDS water

Attempt to cover village based early childhood development centres for under five children known as anganwadi centres also with water and baby-friendly toilets.

Recognition and awards

An Incentive scheme for fully sanitised and open defecation free Gram Panchayats,blocks, and districts called the ‘Nirmal Gram Puraskar’ or any another recognition /award.

Also eligible for the award will be individuals and organisations,which have been the driving force for effecting full sanitation coverage in their respective geographical areas.

Partnership

NGO and private sector participation with entrepreneurships in marketing household ,school,and anganwadi toilets will be an integral part of the national strategy.

SHGs as partners

Self-Help groups(SHGs) can be powerful local institution to manage sanitation and hygiene delivery.

Training on Gender in Communication

Communication targets have largely tended to focus on women as homemakers and caregivers of children,the sick and elderly and this has yielded considerable success.

However,this gender specific focus results in the communication not targeting males as responsible members of families and communities.

Sustainability:

Reasons for taking up sustainability in drinking

water sector:

  • Fast depletion of groundwater level leading to quality problems like   Arsenic
  • Sources go dry due to deforestation, leading to reduced recharge of aquifers
  • Poor maintenance of the existing water supply systems
  • Non-participation of people in the operations and maintenance of the systems
  • Neglect of traditional water management practices and systems

In order to overcome these problems, and to achieve the goal of providing safe drinking water to all rural habitations, Government of India aims to concentrate on (a) control on over extraction of groundwater; (b) funds for repair sand rehabilitation; (c) emphasis on community participation; (d) promotion of water as a socio-economic good; and (e) stronger links with water shed development programmes.

Stakeholder participation

Any future sanitation policies must be  developed and formulated with the involvement and participation of the stakeholders including political leaders, government officials, donor representatives, the private sector, and the public in  general to facilitate informed decision-making. The health impacts of sanitation and the associated economic implications for national and household economies are a primary reason for developing sanitation policies.