Club members celebrated the end of their Toilet Twinning project having twinned a total of 95 toilets in low-income countries across the world. A fantastic achievement as we also celebrate our 90th Charter Year.
Why did we do it?
Working with Toilet Twinning, part of the charity Tear Fund, we raised funds to build toilets in communities where there was no access to any form of toilet. This means that people have to poo in fields or in the bush. Lack of sanitation and poor hygiene is a major cause of illness and death in young children. And, women and girls are especially vulnerable to sexual assault when they go to the toilet in the open. They also risk being attacked or bitten by snakes, particularly if their culture dictates that they must only go out at night.
What did we do?
83 individual toilets have been twinned as well as four blocks of four toilets which are built in schools. This enables hundreds of people to have access to a toilet. These toilets are very different to ours. But, even a very simple toilet consisting of a deep pit in a basic shed, makes an enormous difference. Especially to women and girls who for the first time have space and privacy for their toilet needs.
Who helped us?
We’ve had magnificent support from club members. Also, friends, churches, schools, and other organisations such as Wetherby Lions made very generous donations to the project. We would not have achieved so much without them. We also worked closely with our local Councils achieving Twinned status for Harrogate District and Wetherby Town.
Working Together to make a Difference
Together we can feel very proud to have made such a difference to the lives of families and children in some of the poorest countries around the world. And raised awareness about the lack of safe drinking water and poor sanitation for nearly a third of the worlds population. We are committed to helping achieve the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 6 – Clean water and Sanitation.
