Empowering Schools with Improved WASH Infrastructure

Project background: 

Aligned with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, ensuring every child's access to education is a fundamental principle, encompassing compulsory primary school education for all. WASH in Schools programs play a pivotal role in fulfilling the universal rights to education and health, contributing to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These initiatives increase access to primary education, reduce child mortality rates, promote gender equality, and support targets for improving water and sanitation.

Despite global commitments, meeting every child's right to water, sanitation, and hygiene remains a significant challenge at policy, administrative, and community levels. Shockingly, approximately half of the schools in low-income countries lack access to water and sanitation facilities, leaving millions of children without proper hygiene facilities. This often results in children bringing water from home or going without, resorting to using open spaces for sanitation needs or waiting until they return home. The absence of water and sanitation in schools hampers handwashing practices, leading to the rapid spread of disease in overcrowded classrooms.

Many of these children also lack access to safe water and suffer from chronic diarrhea and intestinal parasites, impacting their growth and learning capabilities. Addressing these challenges is crucial for effective child education. On August 15, 2014, the Honourable Prime Minister of India emphasized the importance of providing toilets in schools, particularly for girls. Despite this, many rural schools in India still lack adequate sanitation facilities, leading to irregular attendance and eventual dropouts. Poor sanitation, inadequate access to clean drinking water, and insufficient personal hygiene contribute to 88% of waterborne diseases among children in India.

Project Pragati is dedicated to enhancing sanitation facilities and fostering proper hygiene practices within schools, emphasizing access to clean and safe toilets and Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) platforms. This initiative aims to establish an optimal learning environment by tackling essential sanitation and hygiene issues in schools. Therefore, United Way India urges you to support our efforts in achieving WASH sustainability across six peri-urban, rural, and urban schools in the Delhi NCR and Bengaluru regions.