Geruwa: changing lives one WASH song at a time

On May 11, 2023 Thakurbaba municipality became the first in Nepal to be recognized as a Total Handwashing Municipality. They started with only 6,7% of homes having accessible handwashing stations. To achieve this Susila, a Wash campaigner with a beautiful handwashing song and 97 more like of her helped. An also Geruwa, the local partner of Tdh was a major factor.

In our first podcast in 2025 we are talking with Hari Subedi, Executive director of Geruwa rural asssociation about the water, sanitation and hygiene programm (Wash) they are implementing in the Nepal. We also speak about the Blue Schools program, that change the lives of teenage girls and of their families.

Episode Transcript

(00:08):
Hello and welcome to LocalLink Hub'spodcast, a show with local
impact for global change.
LocalLink Hub is the localization andpartnership initiative
for Terre des hommes.
We are a global online platform thatprovides free e-learning and capacity
development resources forlocal and national actors.

(00:29):
The project is foundedby the Somaha Foundation.
I'm your host, Enikő Vass, and I'm theCommunication and Content
Manager for LocalLink Hub.
And thank you for listening to today'sepisode with the title, Geruwa:
Changing lives one Wash song at a time.
OnLocalLink Hub podcast, we discuss topics

(00:52):
related to partnership and localization.
In today's episode, I will be talking withHari Sudebi Executive Director of Geruwa
Association, a local partner ofTerre des hommes in Nepal since 2018.
Geruwa is the implementing partner for Tdhin the water, sanitation,

(01:14):
and hygiene programme.
The organisation works in Nepal with 27healthcare facilities and eight schools
to make the life of children better.
Hari Subedi is the ExecutiveDirector of Geruwa.
He has good experience on response andrehabilitation work after the 2015

(01:37):
devastating earthquake in Nepal.
He has been working with local governmentsto build their capacity especially in
policy formulation, Wash systemstrengthening, and community mobilisation.
Inour episode, we talk about the origins of

(01:57):
Geruwa, the need for water sanitationand hygiene programme in the country.
We also explore the story of a handWashingsong that made a real
difference in people's lives.
Let's get started.
Thank you so much, Harri, for being ourguest today on LocalLink Hubs podcast.

(02:19):
Can you tell usa bit about your organisation, Jerova?
It started in 1991, andwhat inspired your work?
Geruwa Rural AwarenessAssociation, we call it in English.
In Nepal, we call Giruwa GramenJagran Sun, and insert Geruva only.

(02:42):
It was established in 1991, after the
restoration of democracy in Nepal in 1990.
At that time,the rural communities faced lots
traditional practisesthat led to frequent outbreak of diarrheas

(03:06):
because of poor health,poor hygiene practises, and also
maternal deaths due to home birth.
At that time, the youthleaders from the 11 villages,
they got united to breaksuch type of traditional practise and

(03:31):
promote education and health awareness,they established this organisation.
They kept the name Geruwa from a river.
The river name is Geruwa in local terms.
This symbolise the continuousservice for the change.

(03:56):
This youth leaderalso called other villages and
other social activists to unite in theteam and started a non-formal
education at that time.
Later on, it also expandedits services into health area.

(04:18):
In upper 1990s, there was a big issueof HIV and AIDS in our communities.
We also expanded our services servicestargeting to the migrant families.
When we walked at that time,we also faced similar problem in other

(04:40):
districts, other neighbouring districts.
Then we expanded our services intoBanque, Kailali, and Concert for as well.
Okay.How did you start working with Tdh?
If I understood well, youstarted your work in 2018.

(05:02):
Probably the Wash initiative brought youtogether, but please detail this start.
Thank you, Enikő.
Yes, we have been workingin Wash since long time.
But at that period, we also got a noticepublished by Tdh,

(05:24):
and we also applied with the projectproposal, and they have
completed their competitiveprocess to select a local partner.
When we got success, then we'reable to collaborate with the Tdh.

(05:45):
And in August 2018, we signed an agreementto implement a Wash project in
the Berthia district.
In this time, I also would like to thankyou all the team members who shown
our strong performance with Tdh.
That also leading us to continue ourpartnership since six years,

(06:11):
and that reflecting a successful andenduring collaboration with the Tdh.
I understand and you elaborated thatpublic health was an issue in Nepal and
the Wash programmes is implementedin schools and healthcare facilities.

(06:33):
What activities do you do there?
Yes, we have been providing basically ourtechnical support to the local government.
And also, we are contributing them somefinancial resources to meet the gap that
we identified jointly in school and healthfacilities and community development.

(06:59):
If you talk about theschool-related activities,
we are continuously supporting for needidentification or you can say
need assessment, baseline study.
We're also supporting them to train theschool committee,
teachers, students on Blue School conceptand overall Wash improvement.

(07:26):
We're also supporting there for theinstallation of basic safe sanitation
facilities or basic safe drinkingwater system and hygiene facilities.
In addition to this, we are alsosupporting them to adopt the climate and

(07:48):
environment-related exercises,which also included in the Blue School
concept,and that also allowing children to
apply their learning within themselves,and also they can replicate such
learning in their community.
We are covering thisactivities in the school.

(08:08):
In healthcare facility, basically, we'resupporting local government to use the
Wash-Fit tool to assess Wash statusand identify the risk associated in
the health facility level.
We also supporting to roll outWash-Fit in the country level.

(08:32):
We're also helpingthe local Wash improvement committee that
form in the health facility level todevelop Wash improvement
plan and implement the plan.
Next thing, we also supporting localgovernment to establish the operation and

(08:53):
maintenance fundat the facility level and the municipality
level Then they can use that fundindependently to repair and maintenance
of Wash structure in the facility level.
This effort, we have getting better resultthrough this effort and also ensuring

(09:18):
sustainable Wash improvement.
And they are also capable to provide thequality services from their institutions.
Okay.
You mentioned the Blue Schools,and I read about that it's a really
interesting and captivating project thatGeruwa helped implement in the schools,

(09:42):
and you teach children about theclimate change and its effects.
Why it's important, thisBlue School programme?
Could you elaborate on this, please?
Okay, I will try my best.
Basically, as we know, Blue School Theconcept is about providing healthy

(10:03):
learning environmentwhile teaching children about the
climate change and sustainable practises.
The intervention starts by ensuring accessto Wash services,
and then it extended beyond to include,the menstrual hygiene, school gardening,

(10:26):
solid waste management, landand water management activities.
Similarly, this exercise also beenintegrated into local curriculum of
the municipality, which coverswater cycle management,
water awareness and sanitation as well.

(10:50):
Basically, wefacilitated to engage children in
the various exercise related to BlueSchool, which make them interactive.
And they also can play the role.
They can practise it byrole play and demonstrate themselves

(11:13):
and also build different type of skills.
The climate change is alsois a practical lesson.
We also teach a student how to increasetheir coping capacity,
and such as a maintaining clean toilets,classroom, and also proper waste disposal,

(11:36):
growing green vegetables,use of keyhole gardens,
and also recycling the materials,and also using eco-friendly transport
system, transport or we can say vehicles,planting trees in different occasions,
and also dressingappropriately for the weather.

(12:00):
We feel that it is very important becauseit is empowering students to adopt
sustainable practise and becomethem change agent in their communities.
The student who learn in the school, theyare also transforming their

(12:22):
skill in the communities.
Such exercises also inspiring themto make earlier environment,
to make them as a change agent.
They also adopt the changesopposed by the climate change.
It is very much important, we feel.

(12:47):
Okay, thank you.
I know that you have a really activepresence on social media, and I saw a
really nice video about one of yourcampaigners using a handWashing song.
Could you tell us the story behind it?
Because I sense thereis a story behind it.

(13:09):
Yes.
Basically, you reminded me the TotalhandWashing campaign, that we facilitated
under the leadership of a local governmentcalled Thakurbaba municipality
of Burbiya district.
At that time, we alsoalso supported to promote Wash, but

(13:33):
there was a problem of poor hand hygiene.
The municipality, and we also discussed,and both of us agreed to do a joint
survey, to identify the dedicatedhandWashing facilities at household level.

(13:54):
When we completed this survey,to our surprise, only 6.
7% homes had such designated or accessiblehandWashing station, which can be used by
the children, senior citizens,and disabled people.

(14:14):
Then when the result comes and we alsodiscuss with the authorities of local
municipality and they feel a little bit,"Okay, then we have to do something here".
Yes.
They decided to launch acomprehensive handWashing campaign.

(14:35):
We also defined all the steps andthe result that we wanted to achieve.
Then we started to support themby developing their policies, strategies,
and also we supported to train thecampaigners and mobilise the campaigners.

(14:59):
The lady who you saw in the Facebookor social media, her name is Susila.
She is one of the campaigner among 98campaigners
at that time, and she delivered that veryimportant message to the community people
through her song.
She is saying, or her song is saying thatrather than getting sick by not Washing

(15:25):
hands, we should always Wash handthrough with so soap and water.
Her voice is very muchstrict in our local context, and
her song and herenthusiasm inspired many people to install

(15:45):
dedicated handWashing stationin their own investment in the household.
As I'm talking with you I also wanted tothank to all the dedicated volunteer
campaigners like Susila and others.

(16:06):
The campaign was successfulbecause of their dedication.
On May 11, 2023, the Takur Babamunicipality, proudly declared
as the first total handWashingmunicipality in the nation.
This experience taught us that goodfacilitation skill of NGO, even

(16:30):
challenging goasl can be achieved.
Building on this success,now we are committed to strengthening
local government Wash system.
Through this success,now we are a little bit changing our
approach towards strengtheningthe local Wash system.

(16:50):
Super.
I had the sense that I need to askthis one, so thank you for telling us.
You work all the time, you work withgovernment officials, with schools, with
teachers, you are organising,facilitating events.
What do you find most challengingin your day-to-day work?

(17:11):
In my view, one of the biggest challenge Iface while working with them
is the capacity gap first.
Next one is infrastructural need.
We haven't such type of infrastructurewhich can will provide equal
access to all the beneficiaries.

(17:34):
And the limited resource even prevent themfrom implementing their ideas as well.
Some of the school children and teacher,always talks with us, "we have this idea",
but there is no budget,there is limited resources.
This is also a next obstacleor problem, I can say.

(17:59):
Additionally, with the teacher or otherofficials, they have also heavy workload.
There is a long type of recruitmentprocess in the government institutions.
Very limited human resources have beenworking there, and they can't

(18:26):
manage day-to-day activities.
In this condition, they also livethe research and innovation
activities as well.
They can't manage time, too, or we can saythey can't manage time for
research and innovation.
This challenge always it'sa challenge to us as well.

(18:48):
To seek to develop new solution andprovide equitable Wash
services to all the students.
Thank you so much.
Looking ahead, what are your hopes andplans for Geruwa and Tdh's common work
in the next, let's say, five years?

(19:12):
Well, I have already mentioned that fromthe total handWashing campaign, we are
shifting towards the Wash systemsof local government.
We have big ambition for coming here.
As a local partner,we will be more focused on facilitating

(19:33):
and providing technical support to thelocal government in
collaboration with the Tdh.
This will also include cost sharing, ideageneration, capacity building to support
local government authorities andpersonnel to ensure sustainable
Wash services for their population.

(19:54):
And towards the end of this phase,along with enhancing our organisation
capacity, we aim to support localgovernment for delivering sustainable Wash
services to its populationin our working area.
Basically, we will be capable and providethem with technical support,

(20:21):
advocacy, and resource sharing,because here is also three layers of
government, province level, federal level.
We will make local government enabled totrap the resource from the
province and federal level.
Thank you very much andgood success with your work.

(20:41):
Thank you very much for this opportunity.
I'm Enikő Vass, and you've beenlistening to a LocalLink Hub podcast.
Our long-time help with thepodcast is Judit Németh-Almási.
Thanks to all of you for listening, andthank you, Hari Subedi, for joining me

(21:04):
today on this LocalLink Hub podcast.
I hope you enjoyed this episode.
If you want to learn more about Terre deshommes initiative, please
visit our website at locallink.childhub.
org .
If you have any comments on the episodeor want to share your thoughts, contact us

(21:25):
via social media on Facebook, LinkedIn,or email us on locallink@childhub.
org.
Thanks for joining.
See you on our next episode.