Narok county has partnered with Amref to make bricks for latrines to improve sanitation among residents.<\/p>\n
County public health director Daniel Sironka said the initiative will enable residents build latrines with materials every household can afford.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are launching a machine which will help in making bricks from commonly available sand and ensure that every family gets to build a modern toilet at a very small cost,\u201d Sironka said.<\/p>\n
Speaking at Mulot in Narok West subcounty, Sironka said only 86 out of 2,000 villages in the county had been declared open defecation free, meaning all the households in those villages have latrines.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are working hard to attain over 90 per cent ODF by the year 2020. That is why we are moving to every village to sensitise them on the need to have a toilet and help them construct toilets using locally available materials,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He added that the county loses over Sh840 million every year from diseases related to diarrhoea and vomiting, which can be avoided if residents had latrines.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have proved that in the 86 villages where residents have built toilets the number of water borne diseases is much lower than other villages. We are optimistic that the disease rate will go down as residents continue to build toilets,\u201d the health official said.<\/p>\n
Amref water, sanitation and hygiene programme manager Daniel Karao said children are the most vulnerable to water borne diseases as they have have weaker immunity.<\/p>\n