Assessing of the state of water supply and sanitation in government primary schools in Dar es salaam: a case of some selected primary schools in Kinondoni municipality

Inadequate water supply and sanitation facilities have been found to be a major problem in government primary schools. This study therefore sets out to assess the state of Water supply and Sanitation in Government Primary schools in Kinondoni Municipality. The required information was collected by using three methods survey questionnaire, in-depth interviews and observation checklist from ten public primary schools in the study area. It used qualitative and quantitative techniques to analyse the data collected. The study found out that there is inadequate reliable water supply, water storage facilities and lack of enough improved water and functioning hand-washing facilities. There is inadequate sanitation facilities and poor structural condition of sanitation facilities. The available sanitation facilities are poorly utilized due to pupils' background of personal hygiene, sanitation technology used at school, pupils' population, lack of hygiene education and school and weakness in implementing S WASH guideline and lack of sanitation policy. The study concludes that although the government primary schools in Kinondoni Municipality own a variety of water sources and sanitation facilities there is generally inadequate coverage of water and sanitation facilities in the district. The study recommends that to increase water reliability at schools, solutions can include multiple sources. Local community and pupils should be involved in SWASH and consider economic (maintenance costs) and cultural appropriateness. Establish a clear set of criteria for selecting schools that are not meeting standards to support improvement of their WASH facilities.