Ethiopia:   An emerging economy  October, 2013

Bajaj's are replacing horse-drawn taxis

   I was delighted to return to Ethiopia to teach sanitation promotion and construction.   This time we were teaching in Hawassa, in the Great Rift Valley about 270 km south of the capital city of Addis Ababa.   It was so good to see large buildings under construction, active commerce and concrete roads.  In the evenings, we visited some new resorts along the shore of Lake Awasa and had some great meals.

Many of our students were from the Oromia region that may very well be the most primitive part of the country.   All were well educated and were either government  employees, teachers, school masters, or Mekane Yesus (Place of Jesus) church employees. About five were Muslim and the rest Christian.  Another team was teaching  a different Lifewater curriculum to a group of students about as large as ours. 

San-Plats are placed over larger slabs of available material

We elected to teach  "San-Plats" (sanitary platforms) rather than full slabs, because we were getting feedback that the Oromia region is too poor for families to afford to build a full slab.      Most published material for San-Plats indicates that rebar is not needed. My experience is that it is not true, so I advocate use of a small piece of rebar to avoid breakage.   Also, use of banana leaves rather than oiling the sides of the forms reduces cost.    We calculated that we built them for about $8 each.

Notice the prominent mound 

For our teachback, we went to a location in the mountains south of the city.   Our students constructed a complete latrine while we watched.  They placed the San-Plat on a larger slab of wood that the locals were certain would not be attacked by termites. One of the most common mistakes in constructing a latrine is to omit the mound.    By elevating the latrine above ground level, you reduce the chances of flood water from filling the latrine which allows the contents to overflow onto the surrounding area and spread disease. By keeping the ground near the slab dry, the mound also helps to the pit lining's role of preventing the pit from collapsing. 

I think another "God thing" happened on this trip, but all of us will have to wait for the next trip or two to see if it was.