Exploring the Intersection of Sanitation, Hygiene, Water, and Health in Pastoralist Communities in Northern Tanzania

Abstract

This paper explores access to water, sanitation, and health in pastoral communities in northern Tanzania. It argues that the concept of gender, used on its own, is not enough to understand the complexities of sanitation, hygiene, water, and health. It explores pastoralists’ views and perspectives on what is ‘clean’, ‘safe’, and ‘healthy’, and their need to access water and create sanitary arrangements that work for them, given the absence of state provision of modern water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) infrastructure. Although Tanzania is committed to enhancing its citizens’ access to WASH services, pastoral sanitation and hygiene tend to be overlooked and little attention is paid to complex ways in which access to ‘clean’ water and ‘adequate sanitation’ is structured in these communities. This paper offers an intersectional analysis of water and sanitation needs, showing how structural discrimination in the form of a lack of appropriate infrastructure, a range of sociocultural norms and values, and individual stratifiers interact to influence the sanitation and health needs of pastoralist men, women, boys, and girls.

Prevalence and Potential Risk Factors for the Acquisition of Antibiotic‐Resistant Staphylococcus spp. Bacteria Among Pastoralist Farmers in Kajiado Central Subcounty, Kenya

“…bacteria have been one of the foodborne pathogens occurring in raw milk; thus, the link between raw milk intake and occurrence of MDR in the study participants is not surprising. Also, from the study, the males had higher odds of acquiring resistant bacteria compared to female which is in line with other studies [121][122][123]. The likelihood of the males to acquire MDR bacteria may be linked to the occupational differences between the two genders in the Maasai community where the males are more involved in animal husbandry compared to the females in this community, as well as differences between hygiene levels in the two genders.…”

Influence of Menstrual Hygiene and Sanitation on Girls Participation in Primary School Education in West Pokot County, Kenya: Head teachers Opinion

“…In Indonesia, Davis et al (2018) Barasa and Waldman (2022) explored access to water, sanitation, and health in pastoral communities in northern Tanzania. They found out that although Tanzania is committed to enhancing its citizens' access to WASH services, pastoral sanitation and hygiene tend to be overlooked and little attention is paid to complex ways in which access to 'clean' water and 'adequate sanitation' is structured in these communities.…”

“…World Health Organisation and UNICEF define MHM as women and adolescent girls using a clean menstrual management material to absorb or collect blood that can be changed in privacy as often as necessary for the duration of the menstruation period, using soap and water for washing the body as required, and having access to facilities to dispose of used menstrual management materials (Hennegan, Dolan, Wu, Scott & Montgomery, 2016). Menstruation is part of the female reproductive cycle starting at puberty (Barasa & Waldman, 2022). Good menstrual hygiene is crucial for both physical and mental health, education, and dignity of adolescent schoolgirls (Vashisht et al, 2018).…”