Healthier Habits

“I am very happy that my students can now conveniently use a proper toilet located close to our school,” said Mr. Nhok Ouert, the teacher at Kok Toch Primary School situated in Angkor Chum district, about 50 km from Siem Reap town.

Kok Toch is a small primary school with only one classroom and 36 village children. The students would normally go to the rice fields nearby to defecate. The hygiene level of Kok Toch village is very low, the students themselves have very poor understanding about the importance of proper hygiene and sanitation, and the value of latrine use. It is fortunate that mid this year, a US Global Village team built the latrine the children are now using. To complement the newly built latrine, the students were also orientated about the proper use of latrine and all about proper sanitation.

“Just a month after the build of the new latrine, I am able to see a significant difference in my school. My students no longer walk to the rice field and even the community people around our school also started to use the latrine and began to aspire to have their own. As a contribution, the community people using the latrine share the responsibility of taking care of it,” said Nhok Ouert, a school teacher.

“We are very happy now that we have the toilet close to our school. I always use this toilet and I never forget to wash my hands properly after. The hygiene orientation made me understand how important sanitation is in our daily lives,” shared Srey Len, a 12-year old grade 2 student.