30th November – Visit to Post Implementation Area: Aziz Bosti, Bagmara Bridge, Khulna

Having visited a pre-intervention community in Dhaka, we travelled southwards to the divisional capital of Khulna for the opportunity to visit a post-implementation community. This was another intense experience, the following is my initial impression of the day, and I will post more pictures and facts at a later stage when I have more time.

Aziz Bosti is a slum of 70 inhabitants, on the outskirts of Khulna. Previously, this area had no water and sanitation infrastructure as the land was privately owned, however in 2006 WaterAid’s partner organization in Khulna NABOLOK formed a community group responsible for developing improved water and sanitation.

It was obvious that the community group were proud of the improvements they had made in setting up tube wells and hygienic toilets and in the provision of hygiene education, the benefits were confirmed anecdotally by a reduction in sicknesses affecting the area.

The school yard, with clean water pump.

We also managed to visit the local school and the headmaster and pupils were eager to tell us how this had meant that as children didn’t have to return home for water or to use the toilet there was less disruption and absenteeism.

As a result the school support group proudly told us that the school was now doing well academically, which is another benefit to providing clean water and sanitation (and the teachers and pupils' hard work of course!!).



Finally, adjacent to the school we visited the household of Saleha Begum, mother of three and wife of Asger. Saleha’s immaculately clean and tidy home and her devotion and pride in her children reminded me of Khohinur who I met on the 28th (see previous post for 29th) in the pre-intervention slum in Dhaka.

Tubewell pump installed by WaterAid's partner Nabolok in 2006

The major difference however, was as Saleha’s family had a water pump directly outside her house and a hygienic latrine nearby, she was not devoting significant hours of her day to securing water, worrying about a limited supply, and under the threat of severe illnesses due to a unhygienic environment.

As a result of this Saleha was filled with optimism about the future, had big hopes for her children, had more time to devote to her family and even help out in her husband’s shop.

This is in contrast to her plight four years ago before WaterAid’s partners addressed the water and sanitation situation, when she had to travel ½ km to the nearest water supply 8-10 times a day to secure enough water for her families’ needs. It’s also in contrast to Khohinur, who on reflection lives under constant stress worrying about whether her family have enough water, and that they avoid sickness from water bourne diseases.



I feel this is a clear example of the difference the money we raise in the UK has on people’s lives, Saleha is now focused on securing a better life for her family.
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