Fundi Upgrading the Sanitation Status of Mutumo Village

Sylvester Mutua is a 35 years old youth who lives at Mutumo village, Kitui East Sub-County.  The construction of improved latrines under FINISH INK has not only upgraded the sanitation status of the community but also created employment opportunity for him and his youth peers.

“I am a trained mason through FINISH Ink’s training in May 2021. I have gained a lot of skills and started training my fellow youth.  So far, I have completed building three modern toilets and there are two more in progress” He says.

Unlike the basic toilets used previously, Sylvester has been trained to construct different types of improved toilets such as leach pit, ventilated improved pit (VIP) and ventilated improved double pit (VIDP), which are done using locally available material and are options promoted under FINISH.

He says construction of the latrines can cost as low as ksh. 15,000 and as high as ksh.60, 000 and above.

 “The importance of these improved toilets we are building is that they can be easily exhausted, have no smell nor flies and are long-lasting” He says.

Through the Sub-County Public Health Office, Sylvester and his mason colleagues have been raising awareness about the importance of having an improved toilet.

This has helped in demand creation of toilets hence making him and his colleagues self-employed. Since the start of the project, Sylvester now earns a stable income that helps take care of his family.

Before venturing into toilet construction, him and his fellow peers used to build houses and could hardly get work to do.  They depended on house construction which was not only unsustainable but also time consuming unlike latrine construction.

He and his colleagues found it hard at the beginning to convince the community on the importance of building an improved latrine. With continuous house hold marketing, People now understand the advantages of owning and constructing an improved latrine.

Sylvester has started constructing an improved latrine in his homestead. This will make him a good example to his community. This will not only make more community members construct improved latrines but also improve their sanitation status.  

“My passion is to make my community a better place. Through the sanitation training, I have gained knowledge that I continue to pass down to my peers.  I believe that I am helping my fellow youth have employment and not engage in crime.” Sylvester says.

Through this initiative, with support from UNICEF, FINISH INK   71 youth in Kitui County have been engaged and capacity build to run their own sanitation businesses.