Tag Archives: Save the Children

World Toilet Day: Putting an End to a Crappy Problem

Global Development, Global Health, Public Health, Water and Sanitation, , , , , , , ,

Blog post courtesy of Eileen Burke, Director of Media and Communications at Save the Children.

For Sarita, age 15, going to the bathroom during school used to bring fears of being bitten by a snake or embarrassment of having people see her going out in the open.

“The surrounding area of the school has poor sanitation,” explained Surya Prasad Bhatta, a teacher at Chaudyal Lower Secondary School in Kailali District of Nepal, where Sarita is a student. “The students would usually have to go on the river bank or in the jungle due to lack of toilets.  It was difficult for them.”

Sarita’s story is all too common among school-age children in developing countries.  Many children have limited or no access to a bathroom during the school day. According to UNICEF, nearly two out of three schools in poor countries lack adequate sanitation.

School-age girls like Sarita, especially those who have reached puberty, are vulnerable to missing school or dropping out when there are no private and safe toilets available.

Save the Children will join with other organizations around the world to draw attention to the global sanitation crisis on Friday, Nov. 19, World Toilet Day,. It is part of the global humanitarian organization’s effort to help children stay healthy and stay in school.

Want to get involved?  Here are some simple actions you can take on World Toilet Day:

As for Sarita, two years ago through a Save the Children-supported program the school built four new toilets for boys and four new toilets for girls.

“Things are different now,” said Sarita. “We use the toilet, and we don’t have to stand in long lines because we have enough of them.  There is privacy, and it is less time-consuming.”

End the Neglect Recognizes World Food Day

Global Development, Global Health, Maternal Health, NTDs, poverty, Public Health, , , , , , ,

Happy World Food Day readers! Many countries in the developing world have reduced child hunger rates since 1990. And with only five years left to reach Millennium Development Goal 1, more than half of the United Nations are on their way to reducing child hunger rates by half. However, much more needs to be done. Hunger and malnutrition affect the “bottom billion” – a population who lives on less than $1 a day – and within this population more than 400 million children are infected with one or more neglected tropical disease (NTD). Soil‐transmitted helminths (STHs), among the most common NTDs also referred to as intestinal worms, contribute to chronic malnutrition regardless of food intake.

This year’s theme is United against hunger. Join in the fight against hunger today, and take the quiz below to test your knowledge on food availability, hunger and the importance of good nutrition for children everywhere.

Universal Children’s Day: A Guest Perspective from Save the Children

Global Health, , , , Universal Children's Day

MugShotBy Seung Lee, Director of School Health and Nutrition, Save the Children

This is the first time I have ever written for a blog. My friends will be surprised that it isn’t about food or travel, but they won’t be surprised that it is about parasites and latrines.

In fact, most of my colleagues and friends know that to dine with me is to risk conversations about bathrooms and worms while discussing the difficult choices on the menu (I usually want to try everything and anything that I haven’t eaten before).  And they know that I have one of the best collections of pictures of school toilets around the world.

A Latrine in Sudan

A Latrine in South Sudan

Today is Universal Children’s Day, which is a significant day for Save the Children because we work to help children survive and thrive through a variety of activities and programs we implement with rural communities. This includes our School Health and Nutrition program, which is implemented in over 20 different countries.  The program focuses on making sure school-aged children are healthy enough to learn and play.

Deworming Children in Pakistan

Deworming Children in Pakistan

De-worming children is one of the easiest activities that we provide, and it is appreciated immediately by children and their parents, who notice that the children are less tired. Sometimes, in countries where the prevalence of worm infection is very high, children will notice the worms that have been expelled from their own bodies as soon as they get the deworming pill in school.

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