School buildings in developing countries
Practical Action
to provided services at a later, but not very far-off, date. Nevertheless there are still
numerous schools throughout the world, generally very small schools in rural areas, without
dedicated water and sanitation provision. If public water supplies and latrines are located
close to a school then this situation is acceptable. If not, then high priority needs to be given
to installing these facilities within the school grounds or close by.
If water reticulation is available then this would need to be extended to the school and a
water tap provided. If this is not available nearby than consideration would need to be given
to sinking a well or, preferably, a borehole at or near the school. A well is sometimes
preferred for water supply in remote rural areas because it can be dug out by hand, whereas a
borehole needs to be drilled out mechanically and a technician with a drill would need to be
hired for this. However, if a well is used it would still be preferable to have the top covered
and a suitable manual pump inserted, rather than having an open well and using some form
of winch and bucket, where there is a risk that, particularly, young children can fall in.
Shallow wells or ponds would rarely be suitable as they would be likely to become dry when
there is no rain, and the water can more easily become contaminated by human and animal
wastes.
Advantage can also be taken of the greater roof area of school buildings compared with
domestic buildings, but only if the roof is sloping, to collect rainwater. Guttering and a
rainwater collection tank would not add greatly to the cost of a school but would provide the
significant benefit of allowing the demand for water from school pupils to be partially met.
The collected water from the tank would be suitable for washing, but a simple sand filter
would need to be used if the water would also be use for drinking. For further information on
collecting water from roof run-offs see the WELL Fact sheet on Domestic Rainwater
Harvesting - although dealing with domestic situations, they could also be applied to schools.
Safe access to a latrine or, more likely in urban areas, a flush toilet, is essential for a school
to function effectively. If children are unable to relieve themselves during school time they
would be likely to be poorer learners, and if they do so behind vegetation, they would be more
likely to be attacked by insects and animals, or be at risk of getting diseases and infections.
Girls, whose education is in any case is often curtailed in favour of boys, would be particularly
disadvantaged if no latrines or toilets were available, as they would prefer to be better
concealed than boys when relieving themselves so that they would go further away putting
themselves at greater risk or be prepared to put up with greater discomfort than boys to the
disadvantage of their education.
To avoid unpleasant smells it would probably be best to site a latrine at least 30 metres away
from the school building, and downwind of the prevailing wind. The latrine needs to be
properly constructed and a proven design such as the Ventilated Improved Pit Latrine (VIP)
developed by the Blair Research Institute in Zimbabwe used to avoid smells and diseases,
and flies and other insects getting into the latrine. If there is rock below ground, or if there is
a high water table the traditional latrine pit - which goes down several metres into the ground,
might not be suitable, so the latrine would need to be built above ground, for example as a
concrete box type chamber. This option could, however, be more costly than the conventional
below ground latrine.
Further information on water and sanitation for schools and the WELL Fact Sheet on School
Sanitation and Hygiene Education; and technical briefs produced by WELL on specific topics.
An electricity supply for schools is becoming increasingly important, especially for secondary
schools, even in rural areas, with the increasing use of computers and audio-visual media in
schools. A separate dedicated power supply from an oil-fired generator would usually be an
expensive option, so an important consideration in the siting of a secondary or even a large
primary school would be on whether it can be connected easily to the electricity grid. If this
is not possible and a generator too expensive, some other options could be possible, but a
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