Save the Children

The provision of safe water and adequate sanitation facilities to communities is a key part of Save the Children’s work in emergencies. However, improperly built and/or poorly maintained WASH facilities (such as latrines) have contributed to child fatalities and serious injuries in the past (commonly from the collapse of the latrine slab or the septic tank ceiling), as have death and injuries caused by water trucks, especially in crowded refugee camps.

Children under 18 can represent 50% or more of a crisis-affected population. While existing emergency WASH literature often refers to the hardware requirements of children, particularly to excreta disposal options, it almost never takes into account the needs of children of different ages and more often provides very superficial information. Similarly, literature on hygiene promotion focuses on primary school age children; meanwhile case studies and examples from the field of how to adapt WASH programmes to suit children's needs are also very limited.