WASH Rotary Action Group Newsletter - July 2020
Join the Team - Make a Difference
The WASH Rotary Action Group is a group of Rotarians with a passionate dedication to providing people everywhere with sustainable access to water, sanitation, and hygiene.

A nine-member Operations Team, reporting to the Board of Directors, is responsible for the day-to-day operations of this group. Recently, two members of the team retired and we are now seeking candidates for the positions of:

Covering Letter from Nicholas Mancus Operations Chair explains how to apply. Deadline is Aug 31.
Learning from WASH Failures
PDG Ron Denham, Chair Emeritus of the WASH Rotary Action Group, moderated a panel discussion on " Learning from WASH Failures ", which was a breakout session of the 2020 Rotary International Virtual Convention. The hour long session has been posted to the new YouTube Channel .

The presentations of the panelist Braimah Apambire, Deurence Anyango, Mike Paddock, Uday Pilani, and DG Peter Verbeek can be found on the WASH Rotary Action Group website .
Curbing Open Defecation
An article in Punch Nigeria highlighted the opening of renovated washrooms and a new borehole water system at a public school in Orlie Agege, Lagos, Nigeria doanted by the Rotary Club of New Towns, Oko Oba, Lagos.

District Governor of District 9110, Dr. Akeredolu at the unveiling said, "We have renovated the toilet which used to be a pit latrine to a modern toilet and constructed a borehole for the school. I can assure you the rate of sickness among staff and students will reduce with these interventions now that there is clean, potable water available to them."

He went on to say that the lack of toilet facilities was one of the reasons people engage in open defecation.
Handwashing with Soap
Every month, the electronic newsletter Water Currents from USAID, provides excellent resources in the area of WASH. The July issue highlights research on the importance of handwashing with soap.

The preamble to the research links indicates that 40% of households lack access to a handwashing facility with soap and water. And 18% of those households have nowhere to wash their hands.
Accelerating Action
The past year has seen a real push to increase awareness of the need to improve WASH in Healthcare Facilities (HCF). This video from Global Water 2020 and the Global Health Council provides updates on progress, successes, failures, and discusses ways to accelerate efforts.

The 2020 WASH in Healthcare Facilities Trailblazers booklet indicates progress and spotlights solutions in this important area of controlling disease.
We have Experts to Help Your Project
The WASH Rotary Action Group has assembled a group of professionals to help Rotary clubs with their WASH projects. The team has experience in needs assessment, planning, project management, grant preparation, implementation, adn WASH training.

Members of the Professional Resources Team are from many countries, expertise in many areas of WASH, experienced in working in developing countries, and are fluent in a number of languages.

For help with a project or to get more information send an email to Info@wasrag.org.
Back to our Rotary's First Service Project
To celebrate their centennial, the Rotary Club of Gastonia, North Carolina, is constructing public washrooms in their home town. The project will include eight restrooms, sinks and water fountains.

The club thought this was an appropriate project that follows the tradition of the first Rotary service project which was a public restroom in downtown Chicago.

For more details read the article in the Gaston Gazette.
Webinars in French, Spanish, and English
The Rural Water Supply Network (RSWN) recently completed a series of 16 webinars with over 2,500 participants. The webinars and resources are available in English, French, and Spanish.

The RSWN has over 700 resources that you can filter by the languages of English, French, Portugese and Spanish,theme, region, type of resource, and year.

For a reasonable subscription you can become a member of RWSN to get their quarterly newsletter and participate in online discussions.
WASH Rotary Action Group Projects
The WASH Rotary Action Group Project Page continues to grow with a variety of projects from around the globe. The project list provides Rotary members with a place to obtain expert advice and obtain financial support from other clubs for major project grants. Future newsletters will include a featured project and a few additional projects from the WASH Rotary Action Group Project page .
Over 700 Thousand Gallons of Clean Water

The  Rotary Club of South Spokane , WA and the host Rotary Club of Barahona, Dominican Republic, through a Rotary Global Grant, is working with  Water@Work Ministry  to build an eighth water plant in the Dominican Republic, which will provide hundreds of thousands of gallons of clean water. Visit here for project overview .
 
The clubs are seeking $18,000 to fund generators to enable more consistent operation of the water plants due to frequent power failures.
Recently Added Projects
Host Club - Sarnia Bluewaterland International Club - Kisumu Central
Total Budget - $125,000 Raised - $37,000

Host Club - Goroka Partner Club - Toowong
Total Budget - $78,000 Raised - $30,000
To get your project listed on the WASRAG Projects page and/or to get highlighted in a future newsletter contact Omar Helferich at  okeithhelferich@msn.com who manages the Projects page
WASH Trivia Contest
As Rotarians become more familiar with Zoom you might want to drop into a Rotary E-Club of WASH meeting at https://zoom.us/j/314362718

This innovative club where all meetings have a focus on WASH subjects, is preparing to have a WASH Trivia contest at an upcoming meeting.

Meetings are held the first and third Thursday of each month at 8 pm Eastern time and the following Tuesdays at 12 noon Eastern time. Check out the upcoming schedule of presentations.
Calendar of Events

Oct 15, 2020 - GLOBAL HANDWASHING DAY

Nov 19, 2020 - WORLD TOILET DAY

Mar 22, 2021 - WORLD WATER DAY

May 5, 2021 - HAND HYGIENE DAY

May 28, 2021 - MENSTRUAL HYGIENE DAY
To submit stories, videos, and pictures for the WASRAG Newsletter send an email to info@wasrag.org .
The Water and Sanitation Rotarian Action Group (WASRAG) is pleased to consider partnerships with any corporate supporter. Due to the unique attributes of water sources and water provision, acceptance of corporate support does not imply an endorsement of any particular water technology. Rotarians, Rotary clubs, and Rotary partners must evaluate any technology to determine if it is the best solution for the conditions where the program will be implemented. WASRAG can provide guidance about where different technologies work best, but Rotarians and Rotary clubs must make the final decision about how to implement their programs.