Overview

Secondary school enrollment rates among girls in Nepal’s mountainous Gulmi district is just 71% (GDSWP 2016-2020). When girls do enrol, they are often absent and drop-out rates are high. While multiple factors drive these disparities, a key reason notes are that girls do not attend when menstruating due to poor toilet and sanitation facilities at school.

The Transforming Education through Energy Access and Simple Sustainable Solutions (TREATS) project aims to address this issue by by making education more inclusive across all eleven secondary schools in Gulmi Durbar Rural Municipality, Gulmi District.

The project is achieving this through installing solar water pumping systems at two communities, brining water to both the local secondary school and the community; improving sanitation and hygiene facilities at all the schools; and delivering a youth-led education campaign on Water, Sanitation and Hygiene that will bring benefits to the wider communities. Through this joined up approach the project aims to ensure that all schools in the target area are operating on a level playing field when it comes to water, sanitation and hygiene.

Objective & Outcomes

Specific objective: to improve access to secondary education for 3,312 vulnerable children, including children with disabilities, through clean energy powered water provision, and accessible, dignified WASH facilities in eleven secondary schools in Gulmi Durbar RM.

1: Two SolarMUS systems are installed and pumping water from community-owned water sources, benefitting two communities and their two local secondary schools.

2: Eleven secondary schools are equipped with drinking water, sanitation and hygiene facilities that are accessible to all students and teachers.

3: Eleven secondary schools / communities have WASH operation and management strategies supported by confirmed financial and human resources in place to ensure new WASH systems and behaviours are sustainable into the future.

4: All students attending eleven secondary schools are oriented on safe water, sanitation and hygiene practices, and girls have the knowledge and support to manage their menstrual hygiene in an inclusive and non-discriminatory environment.

5: 100 secondary school aged boys and girls (50%+ female) are empowered as active ‘Youth Agents of Change’ (YACs) to deliver awareness raising and behaviour change activities in safe water use and good hygiene to 14,904 community members.