GENERAL NEWS

75-year-old widow borrows from Savings and Loans Company to build toilet

Madam Georgina Kyeremaalo, a 75-year-old widow, has constructed a toilet facility for a household of 15 from money she borrowed from a Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) introduced by UNICEF to empower women.

The cost of constructing the toilet aimed to stop open defecation is estimated at GHS100.00 and covered payment of services, roofing sheets, moulding of bricks and digging of septic tank.

Narrating to the Ghana News Agency at Kunzokala-Katiilu about the latrine construction in the Diffiama/Bussie/Issa District, Madam Kyeremaalo, who is also a farmer, said she took the initiative following the collapse of her household latrine.

The household used to practice open defecation, she said, which made the people prone to sanitation related diseases such as cholera, especially among children.

“We didn’t know the importance of owning a toilet, but now we know from the previous one we were using,” she added: “If you have a toilet you don’t have to go to the bush in the night, our animals will not also have access to our faeces”.

“We don’t see house flies in the house like before. Our children used to run diarrhoea but now it has stopped”.

She advised colleague women to follow her footsteps and to construct a resilient household latrine for their families.

The Kunzokala-Katiilu community was one of the 26 communities in the Daffiama Area Council that were Open Defecation Free (ODF) out of a total of 27 communities.

The remaining community was the Saapari which was designated as ODF potential and earmarked to attain ODF status by November this year.

Mr Murtala Mohammed, the officer in-charge of the Daffiama Area Council and a Field Facilitator for the Kunzokala-Katiilu, entreated other women to emulate the example of Madam Kyeremaalo.

He also urged opinion leaders and community-based leaders to support the campaign against open defecation to improve lives.

UNCEF introduced the VSLA to the community with the optimism that it would help empower the women economically to meet their basic life needs.

The DBI District was ranked fourth on the June 2019 Regional ODF League Table launched by the Upper West Regional Coordinating Council (RCC), the Regional Inter-agency Coordinating Committee on Sanitation (RICCS) and other partners.

 

Source: Ghananewsagency.org

Ogyem Solomon

Solomon Ogyem – Media Entrepreneur | Journalist | Brand Ambassador Solomon Ogyem is a dynamic Ghanaian journalist and media entrepreneur currently based in South Africa. With a solid foundation in journalism, Solomon is a graduate of the OTEC School of Journalism and Communication Studies in Ghana and Oxbridge Academy in South Africa. He began his career as a reporter at OTEC 102.9 MHz in Kumasi, where he honed his skills in news reporting, community storytelling, and radio broadcasting. His passion for storytelling and dedication to the media industry led him to establish Press MltiMedia Company in South Africa—a growing platform committed to authentic African narratives and multimedia journalism. Solomon is the founder and owner of Thepressradio.com, a news portal focused on delivering credible, timely, and engaging stories across Ghana and Africa. He also owns Press Global Tickets, a service-driven venture in the travel and logistics space, providing reliable ticketing services. He previously owned two notable websites—Ghanaweb.mobi and ShowbizAfrica.net—both of which contributed to entertainment and socio-political discussions within Ghana’s digital space. With a diverse background in media, digital journalism, and business, Solomon Ogyem is dedicated to telling impactful African stories, empowering youth through media, and building cross-continental media partnerships.

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