Water, sanitation and hygiene practices in early childhood development (ECD) centres in low socio-economic areas in Nelson Mandela Bay, South Africa
Open accessAbstract
Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) are vital indicators to healthy living and safe environments for child development. The aim of the study was to determine WASH status and practices in ECD centres located in low socio-economic areas of Nelson Mandela Bay during 2017. This cross-sectional study elicited responses from 46 ECD centres which had a total of 3,254 children and 172 caregivers. A structured questionnaire and visual observation were used. Using core WASH in schools' indicators (WinS) showed that despite improved water sources being available in 91% of the facilities, WinS for hygiene was poor. The study observed that 57% of the respondents had improved toilets accommodating both genders. In 29% of ECD centres, 6–10 children make use of a ‘pottie’ while in 9% of the cases, more than 20 children make use of one ‘pottie’. The use of the bucket system was noted in 22% of the ECD centres. In 79% of the ECD centres, children wash their hands in a communal plastic bowl. Only 11% of the study population washed hands hygienically under a running tap or tippy tap. WASH conditions in the ECD centres in the study area require urgent attention and further investigation for practical solutions. This article has been made Open Access thanks to the generous support of a global network of libraries as part of the Knowledge Unlatched Select initiative.
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Health problems interfere with students' ability to attend school, stay healthy, or take advantage of their educational opportunities.
“Melariri et al. (2019) note that health problems interfere with students' ability to attend school, stay healthy, or take advantage of their educational opportunities.”
From The level of implementation of water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) practices among the public basic schools in Ghana (2024) · cites this paper as Melariri et al. (2019)
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ЗНАЧЕННЯ ГІГІЄНИ ОДЯГУ У ЗАХИСТІ МЕДИЧНИХ ПРАЦІВНИКІВ
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- Authors
- Melariri, P., Steenkamp, L., Williams, M., Mtembu, C., Ronaasen, J., & Truter, I.
- Affiliations
- Nelson Mandela University (ZA)
- Corresponding author
- Melariri, Paula
- Venue
- Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development
- Publisher
- IWA Publishing
- Published
- 2019-01-11
- Volume
- 9
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 164-171
- ISSN
- 2043-9083 (ISSN-L)
- 2408-9362
- OpenAlex
- W2911001779
- Cited by
- 18
- References
- 18
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 1
- FWCI
- 1.14
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- diamond
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Journal of Water Sanitation and Hygiene for Development (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Nelson Mandela University Research Repository (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Nelson Mandela University
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Child Nutrition and Water Access
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Speech and Hearing › School Health and Nursing Education
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Water Science and Technology › Water Resource Management and Quality
- Keywords
- water, sanitation and hygiene, early childhood development centers, child hygiene practices, hand washing, toilets, Nelson Mandela Bay
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