A voice for the marginalised creates accessible handwashing for the community – including all
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- A voice for the marginalised creates accessible handwashing for the community – including all
A voice for the marginalised creates accessible handwashing for the community – including all
In Swami Basti, Jaipur, India, Ramesh is proud to show off the newly installed, accessible handwashing station that he, his family and entire community can benefit from every day to maintain their hand hygiene – important for their health always, but particularly with the threat of COVID-19 never far from their minds.
Swami Basti is a poor community in Jaipur, home to many vulnerable people and households who have suffered disproportionately due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 22 per cent of the world’s poorest people have a disability. Disability and poverty are often linked as people living in poverty have a higher chance of acquiring a disability due to lack of medical care, poor nutrition, violence, unsafe housing, and getting injured at work.
Ramesh, who lives with a disability will not only benefit from this accessible foot operated handwashing station, he also played an important role in its creation!
Through the Water for Women Fund project, supported by the Australian Government, Centre for Advocacy and Research (CFAR) in collaboration with the Municipal Corporation or Urban Local Body, play a role in addressing the diverse WASH needs of the community (there are community forums called community management committee in each slum federated into a Single Window Forum at the Ward level and each of these committees and forum are managed and run by representatives of marginalised groups such as single women, persons with disability or from the transgender or sexual and gender minority groups). Ramesh is an active master trainer who educates community members on techniques of handwashing, which he learnt at a communication workshop conducted in August.
Ramesh and other members from the Single Window Forum set up the facility after the training, which now benefits 45 households including the disabled.
Ramesh and his wife Saroj are disabled. With two children to take care of and access to water being a challenge, this handwashing station has been an important addition for the family and the community as a whole.