Volunteers Build New Loo's in Rural Schools

A completed toilet black
in one of our partner
Wild Coast Pre-schools

It goes without saying that schools need loo's! Yet in many rural pre-schools in the under-developed Eastern Cape of South Africa there is a lack of sanitary facilities. VA32, with the assistance of volunteers from International Student Volunteers, have begun to tackle this issue in partner preschools in the wider Chintsa area.

Volunteer groups have been working with VA32 project leader Milton at Mzwini and Somila Day Care Centres at the Southern end of the Wild Coast of South Africa.

The toilets are built on the long drop design which is a particularly popular solution in rural areas where there is little access to running water.

Hygiene Friendly "Tippy Tap" Built in Rural South African Pre-school

Running water is something we take for granted every day. Every time we flush the toilet, wash our hands, rinse a cup, need clean clothes or fill a pot of water to cook... it's there.

I have, during my time in South Africa, experienced a few occasions of having no running water; it's really scary. To turn a tap on and nothing come out and to not know when it will is a feeling that makes ones life feel quite out of control of your own life. To have to collect water from a tap down the road, a river or dam to wash your pots and plates, to not be able to wash your hands, body or clothes clean for a day or two - if you've ever experienced it you'll know the feeling.

Playtime at Somila Daycare Centre, South Africa

It's high season here in Chintsa! The 16th May marked the arrival of our first group of "impact" volunteers. By "impact" we mean - short term with an immediate and measurable outcome. Our impact groups stay for two weeks and are challenged with either completing an entire small project within that time frame (for example building a jungle gym) or being a part of a longer term project (for example building a classroom which could take a whole season).

This season there will be nine groups of volunteers taking part in various Community Development projects in the wider Chintsa area.

The first and second groups were based at Somila Daycare Centre. This project works in partnership with Caring for Orphans in Rural Areas (CORA), a South African organisation which works together with rural communities in improving daycare facilities by creating or uplifting centres, establishing feeding schemes, playgrounds and vegetable gardens, assisting in training and mentoring the management of centres amongst other support, in the wider Wild Coast area.