Comprehensive Cholera-Prevention Response in Education in Kapoeta and Magwi AVSI South Sudan conducted an education rapid assessment in Kapoeta region, covering the areas of Kapoeta North, Kapoeta East and Kapoeta South, from Wednesday July 5th to Friday July 7th 2017. The aim of the assessment was to understand the education situation in Kapoeta State, especially related to aspects of hygiene and sanitation, considering the recent outbreak of cholera that affected the region.
In order to tackle this cholera crisis, AVSI is proposing a comprehensive response to this situation through a direct intervention in schools with a WASH programme that will respond to the immediate health threats that pupils are facing during learning hours due to the poor hygiene conditions of the schools. The strategy behind this intervention is to use schools as catalysts for behavioral change regarding cholera-prevention and treatment among the whole community of the area.

The first step of this intervention will focus on providing the schools with the right tools for facing a potential cholera-outbreak in the establishments. Constructing proper latrines and boreholes, installing water tanks for water collection, and distributing hand-washing facilities and general hygiene supplies will be crucial in the first stage of the cholera response. The current situation of the latrines (in all schools) of 1 every 112 students in average (not sex-differentiated), is far below the SPHERE standards of 1 toilet every 30 girls and 1 toilet every 60 boys, does not guarantee a safe and clean learning environment. In fact, they are insufficient in number and in quality, and many of the available are already filled or almost collapsed. Key activities: construction of boreholes and latrines, installment of water tanks and hand-washing facilities, distribution of WASH items.

The second step will be meeting the capacity gap at the school level. Teachers and PTAs have not been trained on cholera preparedness and response. It is important
to intervene through capacity building to engage teachers and PTA members to ensure that pupils in particular, and the community in general, are informed about the
risk of cholera and best hygiene practices to adapt to in order to avoid contamination (e.g. washing hands after visiting toilets, hygiene food handling, drinking clean water and proper waste disposal). Beneficiaries need therefore to be empowered to take control of their health by practicing proper hygiene and sanitation in their schools, homes, and surroundings. In order to accomplish that, training will be complemented by the establishment of hygiene clubs that will have the objective of carrying out WASH-related activities with the students so as to familiarize them with the importance of conducting their lives in proper hygiene conditions. It is envisaged that this will mitigate the probability of a severe outbreak of cholera in the targeted schools. Moreover, the establishment of hygiene clubs in the schools will
enable the students to learn and share hygiene messages and practices with their families, and so as to not only mitigate cholera in schools but also in the communities. Using schools as entry-points, this strategy is conceived to bring behavioral changes in the whole population of the targeted geographical area. Key activities: hygiene and sanitation training, cholera-prevention training, establishment of hygiene clubs in schools.