WASH in ESNFI. Emergency Repairs, and Construction of New water Supply Schemes , Hygiene Promotion, and Hygiene/Water Kits distribution in Samangan, Jawzjan, and Paktika provinces Two consecutive years of droughts of 2021, and 2022 has vast impacts over the water resources, including aquifer recharge in Afghanistan. The impacts are wide spread, affecting both rural and urban communities, while exacerbating already tense situation of water supply in Samangan, Jawzjan, and Paktika provinces. The quantity and quality of available water for drinking and domestic use is contributing to AWD outbreaks, and cholera cases are on the rise as they are regularly reported from these areas. The recent earthquake in Paktika province has further increased the chances of AWD and cholera outbreaks that has posed serious life threats to the children.  

In the eight districts of Jawzjan (Sheberghan, Fayzabad), Samangan (Aybak, Hazrat Sultan, and Feroznakhchir) and Paktika (Sarawzah, Urgun, Oman), WASH in ESNFI activities will include emergency rehabilitation and construction 17 of water supply schemes, water source protection, hygiene trainings of  4,762 men and women heads of HH, and hygiene/water kits distribution.  Hygiene kits/Water kits will be supplied by the AHF. ORD has already implemented similar project with similarly interventions in these three provinces, and have also recently conducted a WASH assessment. ORD proposes the WASH cluster prioritized activities including Safe drinking water access at community and household level, Water-efficient proper handwashing, and agreed locations on water points with the most vulnerable in Paktika, Jawzjan, and Samangan provinces.  

The rehabilitation of existing water supply schemes will involve fixing of broken pipes, renovation of broken public taps, replacing of broken/highly used pumps with clear marks of wear and tears, renovation of the RCC tanks supplied with public taps, varnishing of steel elevated tanks, and provision of solar panels and invertor. Similarly, construction of new water supply scheme will involve construction of an intake at the spring, spreading of main pipe to convey water from the spring to RCC tank constructed in the middle of the village, or drilling of borewell, supplied with submersible pump and solar panels and an RCC tank supplied with a number of public hoes/taps. ORD will first check and test the water sources quality and quantity to make sure that the scheme will be one hundred percent successful. 
 
ORD has a strong presence in the SE provinces from 2010, in East region since 2014, and in central region since 2021 and currently has many ongoing projects in the N/NE regions. For example, WASH project activities in Paktika, Samangan, and Jawzjan provinces under AHF funding  is going to be completed by 31 of July, 2022, but the need for clean drinkable water is way big as sick people can be commonly seen in the cities, and villages.  The AHF's 2022 One-year fund will scale up and fill the ORD's current responses gap, and will be a holistic approach,  and will become a multi-cluster response to the vulnerable population which is highly affected by the two consecutive years drought in the already very dry Jawzjan, Samangan, and Paktika provinces. 

ORD will ensure that the most vulnerable and in needy people are among the affected population groups prioritized for this action, with 3,968 HHs (27,776 individuals) following WASH cluster standards for natural disaster (droughts, and earthquake) and conflict-affected people to respond to their WASH needs. Moreover, the project beneficiaries, and water supply schemes,  waterpoints selection and hygiene trainings, and hygiene /water kits distribution will be carried out in line with cluster standards the selection process will be carried out using certain structured questionnaire/scorecard tools which will be shared by the WASH cluster for each modality. in case it was not available, ORD will develop a questionnaire and will share with AHF/cluster colleagues for approval.