Community-led Accelerated WASH IV

08/05/2026

Integrating and : COWASH IV and Max Foundation Technical Training in Central Ethiopia 💧🥗

Last week (April 27 - May 1, 2026 ), COWASH IV Ethiopia and Max Foundation Ethiopia conducted a technical training programme on Liquid Soap and Reusable Sanitary Pad Production in collaboration with Wolkite Polytechnic College and Satellite Institute.🧼🧵

This training is a key component of a partnership initiative between COWASH IV and Max Foundation to integrate Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) with Nutrition and Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture in the pilot Woreda of Fofa, Central Ethiopia.📍

The training aimed to build the production skills of the members of the newly established Selam Sanitation Enterprise, while strengthening the follow-up capacity of personnel at the regional and Woreda levels. 👩‍🏫 By facilitating the establishment of this enterprise in January 2026 and providing specialized training, the partnership aims to ensure the local availability of affordable supplies to the communities in Fofa.

🤝 A Strategic

This marks the second training programme under this initiative. Previously, in January 2026, a joint team launched the Woreda-level implementation of the initiative by conducting a comprehensive Training-of-Trainers programme in the Central Ethiopia Region. This session included 50 participants, including government experts, agriculture workers, health extension workers, and local enterprises. Following that programme, the nutrition segment was cascaded to health extension workers.👩‍⚕️

🗒️Ongoing Joint Activities

Under this partnership, the joint team regularly conducts the following:

🔹 Nutrition Counseling: Provided at health posts regarding food diversification, frequency and feeding patterns for pregnant and lactating women, as well as children under two years of age. 🥗

🔹 Cooking Demonstrations: Practical sessions on preparing diversified food and porridge for children using homemade supplies.🥣

🔹 Knowledge Sharing: Nutrition awareness creation sessions for the wider community.🗣️

🔹 Growth Monitoring: Conducted at health posts and communities for children under two years of age across five health posts. The partnership previously provided growth monitoring and cooking demonstration equipment in January 2026.📈

🔹 Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture: Practical training for households in poultry production and homestead gardening.🪴

🔆Looking Ahead: This week, the joint team is conducting a nutrition business assessment. Guided by the Seqota Declaration, this assessment aims to identify private sector engagement, system constraints, and potential entry opportunities for future development.

Following last week’s training, the partnership is in the process of providing start-up capital for the newly established sanitation enterprise and growth monitoring and cooking demonstration equipment for the remaining health posts in Fofa Woreda.

07/05/2026

COWASH IV Community Conversation Initiative in Berek Woreda 🙋‍♀️

📈Impact and Progress

Since late January 2026, the COWASH IV Community Conversation (CC) initiative has been active across four kebeles in Berek Woreda, Oromia. To date, all planned sessions have been successfully completed, with four CC groups engaging 103 active participants.

👥 Participants described these sessions as highly interactive, providing a platform for households to:

🔹 Openly Discussing sanitation and hygiene challenges.

🔹 Exchanging personal experiences.

🔹 Reflecting on and committing to sustainable behavior change.

🚘 Observations from the Field

During a visit on May 29 - 30, 2026, the COWASH IV team observed encouraging progress:

🔹 Early adopters have already begun constructing improved latrines.

🔹 Member households are now proactively allocating financial resources for improved latrines and handwashing facilities.

🔹 There is a notable increase in awareness and a more positive attitude toward hygiene practices.

🎓 The Final Step to Graduation

The success of these conversations has generated a surge in demand for sanitation products. In response, the Woreda Health Office is preparing to train local masons to produce concrete slabs and other essential technologies.

To officially graduate from the programme, finalize the construction of both an improved household latrine and a handwashing facility, in addition to completing all sessions. Members have expressed total readiness to move into the construction phase as soon as these sanitation products become available.

🛖 Expansion to Other Villages

Following a productive debriefing with Woreda officials, COWASH IV and the Woreda Health Office have agreed to expand these conversations to additional villages within the four kebeles.🛠️

The COWASH IV Community Conversation initiative began in September 2025 with the training of volunteer facilitators, moving to village-level group discussions by October. Currently, the initiative includes 76 CC groups with 2280 members participants across five project regions, laying a strong foundation for sustainable sanitation and hygiene practices.💧

06/05/2026

Strengthening WASH Systems through On-the-Job Training in Berek Woreda, Oromia💧

The COWASH IV team recently concluded a comprehensive On-the-Job Training (OJT) mission in Berek Woreda, Oromia.👥Last week (May 29 - 30, 2026), the team engaged with two kebeles to reinforce the Community-Managed Project (CMP) approach and enhance local Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) practices.

Through household visits, community water schemes, school and health post facilities file assessments and site observations of WASH facilities, the mission focused on several critical pillars:

🔹 Water Safety Planning:🛡️ Conducted file reviews and on-site assessments to ensure water safety plans are integrated into water points and institutional latrines.

🔹 The WASH Implementation Approaches:📋 Verified that community water points and institutional WASH infrastructures were constructed according to CMP and Woreda-managed Project protocols respectively, reviewing documentation from the project application stage through to final approval.

🔹 Infrastructure Standards:🏗️ Conducted site visits to ensure facilities meet technical standards, providing immediate feedback on identified gaps to ensure long-term sustainability.

🔹 Sanitation and Hygiene:🧼 Assessed household and institutional practices while delivering awareness and behavior change sessions to promote sustainable sanitation and hygiene behaviours.

🔹 Water Quality Monitoring:🧪 Performed water quality testing on both community water point and health post water scheme to ensure safety and compliance.

🤝 The mission concluded with a consultation meeting involving the Woreda administration and COWASH focal persons. The discussion centered on addressing observed challenges and identifying specific opportunities to improve service delivery and infrastructure management moving forward.

30/04/2026

Beyond Basic Needs: Turning Services into Local Economic Opportunities💧

Providing access to WASH infrastructure does more than meet a basic need; it paves the ground for promoting local economic opportunities. 🏗️🛍️

When a community leads a project through the Community-Managed Project ( ) approach, they don’t just gain access to water, sanitation and hygiene services, they also promote local . 🤵‍♀️ COWASH IV is bridging the gap between infrastructure and affordable service delivery by fostering economic opportunities such as:

🔹 Establishing local sanitation production and supply centers and training members on toilet slab and liquid soap production.🧼🏬

🔹 Training skilled artisans to maintain water infrastructure and provide essential repair and spare parts supply services.🔧👷‍♂️

🔹Training local tailors and school groups on reusable sanitary pad production.🧵

🔹Linking WASH Savings and Loan Associations, established for improved household latrine construction, directly with local sanitation product suppliers.💰🤝

By empowering local entrepreneurs and communities to provide affordable and accessible services, COWASH IV is ensuring the long-term sustainability of WASH infrastructure.✅

29/04/2026

The Role of MHM Centers in Protecting Girls from the Psychological Stress of Social Misunderstanding👭🛡️

Menstrual Hygiene Management ( ) centers are often discussed in terms of infrastructure and school attendance. However, their impact goes much deeper. At Samre Primary School in Tigray, we see how these facilities serve as a vital shield against the psychological distress and social stigma that often hinder a girl’s development.🏫

The Reality of Social Stigma🚫

In many rural communities, the simple biological reality of menstruation is clouded by social misunderstanding. As Awetash Aregay, a teacher and MHM coordinator at Samre school, explains, the fear of being seen with soiled clothes was a source of deep anxiety for her students. This fear wasn't just about the mess; it was about being falsely judged by the community, as stains could be misinterpreted as a sign of sexual activity. They are also considered being unclean. This emotional weight often led to school absenteeism and severe stress.🙍‍♀️

The Impact of MHM Centers✅

By providing a private space and a dedicated counseling program, COWASH IV is addressing the root of this distress. The transformation at Samre school shows that:

🔹 Restoring Confidence: When girls are relieved of this psychological weight and equipped with the products and knowledge they need, they no longer fear the journey home or the judgment of their peers. 🙋‍♀️💪

🔹 Shifting the Narrative: With both male and female teachers providing active support and normalizing the conversation, the center is slowly moving the community from stigma toward understanding.🗣️🤝

🔹 Holistic Growth: Relieved of constant anxiety, students can focus on their academic performance and healthy psychological development.📚🧠

The Result: Dignity in Education🎓

The success at Samre is a testament to why MHM accessibility is a critical part of rural education. It is about protecting a girl's right to grow, learn, and develop without the unnecessary burden of social shame. It ensures every girl can pursue her education with dignity.

📽️ See the full story of Samre’s girls’ story and our MHM initiatives:

🎞️ Restoring WASH in Tigray: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5g1Cp-rWLk

🎞️ Empowering Women: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZafNDyBUGc&t=5s

🎞️ COWASH IV Documentary Series:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzpVY3jbFx4&list=PLj13Dv5oarutly1HMK4_yTNRsOV_BSKVD&pp=0gcJCbcEOCosWNin

The conflict in Tigray has ravaged communities, leaving a devastating mark. WASH infrastructure, vital for health and dignity, has been severely compromised....

28/04/2026

COWASH IV: Building Systems beyond Infrastructure⚙️💧

Since its inception in April 2021, COWASH IV has reached a significant milestone in institutional capacity building. As of December 30, 2025, a total of 91,958 individuals have participated in our specialized training programmes.👩‍🏫

How does this lead to lasting change? 🤔 Our approach focuses on System Strengthening through a structured Training of Trainers model:

🔹 Regional and Woreda Level: Selected officials and experts receive training on technical and management standards.

🔹 Knowledge Transfer: These trainers then cascade their expertise down to local levels, ensuring skills remain within the community.

🔹 Holistic Skillsets: Training covers both "hard" skills (infrastructure viability and maintenance) and "soft" skills (behavioral change and community conversation guidance).

By empowering local government and community leaders, we ensure that WASH services are not only constructed but are professionally managed and sustained for years to come.🤝

Strengthening local systems is the most reliable path to universal and sustainable Water supply, Hygiene and Sanitation ( )services.💧✨

23/04/2026

COWASH IV WASH Saving and Loan Associations’ Impact on the Ground💧

A core mission of COWASH IV is empowering households to take charge of their own sanitation and hygiene. To achieve this, COWASH in collaboration with local stakeholders establishes WASH Saving and Loan Associations (SLAs),

effective community-led groups that create financial independence, allowing families to fund and build their own improved latrines.💰🏡

📈The Growth of SLAs: Since we began this initiative at the end of EFY 2014, we have seen a significant surge in community participation and improved household latrine construction🚽:

🔹 EFY 2015: 47 SLAs established ➔ 353 Improved Latrines

🔹 EFY 2016: 84 SLAs established ➔ 423 Improved Latrines

🔹 EFY 2017: 163 SLAs established ➔ 1,411 Improved Latrines

🔹 EFY 2018 (until end of December): 108 SLAs established ➔ 1,806 Improved Latrines

✨Total Impact: In just over three years, 402 SLAs have empowered 3,993 households across 49 Woredas out of 104 project Woredas to build their own improved latrines and hand-washing facilities.

Beyond the Latrine: What happens next?⏩ The impact doesn't stop once the latrine is built. Many communities choose to keep their SLAs active to tackle even bigger goals:

🔹 Village Cleanliness: Funding communal sanitation efforts. 🏘️

🔹 Green Energy: Transitioning diesel-powered water points to solar power.☀️

🔹 Growth: Evolving into Rural Saving Cooperatives to provide larger loans for WASH infrastructure.🏦

COWASH IV supports these groups every step of the way through specialized training, follow-up visits, and by connecting them with concerned local authorities. 👩‍🏫

Through initiatives like SLAs, COWASH IV is not just building facilities; it is empowering communities to design, fund, and manage their own sustainable future. 💪 🌱

22/04/2026

International Mother Earth Day: How COWASH is Bringing WASH services while Protecting the Earth 🌍

At COWASH IV, our commitment to the Earth goes beyond climate adaptation. We actively take responsibility for environmental protection during our work. From the very first appraisal to the final follow-up, our team follow a step-by-step environmental safeguarding measure:

🔹 Preventing Degradation: We screen every project to avoid deforestation and soil erosion.🛡️

🔹 Mitigating Impact: Our risk management and Water Safety plans help us to ensure for eco-friendly construction.🏗️

🔹 The Green Legacy: Through watershed management and the Green Legacy Initiative, we are planting the seedlings to ensure the ground stays strong and the water stays clean.🌱

Safe water depends on a healthy Earth. By protecting our biophysical environment, addressing environmental challenges and promoting harmony with nature during construction, we can secure a sustainable safe water supply for the long term. 💧

Happy International Mother Earth Day!

16/04/2026

Knowledge sharing at the COWASH IV office💡

We recently held an internal training session on water quality testing, led by our Climate and Environment Risk and Water Safety Specialist. By equipping our broader team with these technical skills, they can now conduct independent tests during field visits, increasing our efficiency and coverage. 📈

🤔 Why this matters:

🔹 Trust: When communities see the testing process, it builds confidence in the safety of their water source.🤝

🔹 Proactive Safety: Early identification of contamination allows for immediate corrective action and better health outcomes.🛡️💧

Continuous learning is at the heart of the COWASH IV mission.📑✨

15/04/2026

Is accessible infrastructure "pointless" if the path to it is still blocked? ♿

In many projects, one of the common arguments against building accessible WASH infrastructure cost and existing environmental barriers. Some ask: "What is the point building a toilet block or a Menstrual Management Center ( ) with ramps and accessible features if the path leading to it isn’t ready yet?"🤔

📍 At Gorche Woreda Primary and Middle School, we saw exactly what the point is.

🔹 The Catalyst Effect: Four years ago, COWASH IV opened the first MHM center in the woreda along with toilet blocks. As part of its commitment to inclusion, the project ensured the construction of each of these facilities were accessible for persons with disabilities.🏗️ However, at the time, the physical path connecting these buildings remained a barrier for them.

📣Instead of seeing this as a failure, the school and Woreda CMP advisers used these buildings as a powerful advocacy tool. Their consistent push for full accessibility caught the attention of partners, leading to additional support from UNICEF Ethiopia to construct a concrete accessible ramp linking the facilities.

👩‍🏫 What we learned: Construction was completed last month (March 2026), proving that building to an inclusive standard matters, even when you cannot address every barrier at once.

Why we start, even when it’s imperfect:

🔹 It sets a standard: It shows what "right" looks like.

🔹 It creates visibility: Barriers become obvious once the building itself is accessible.

🔹 It strengthens advocacy: It gives local leaders a tangible reason to ask partners for support.

🔹 It sparks wider action: What began as one project investment became a district-wide push for full accessibility.

We may not be able to do everything at once, but inclusive infrastructure acts as a spark for government and partner organizations to finish the puzzle.🧩 What we saw in Gorche Woreda confirms exactly that. ✅

14/04/2026

Securing Sustainable Drinking Water Supply: How Integrates Nature-Based Solutions?🌿

A sustainable water tap starts long before the pipes are laid. It starts in the watershed.🏔️To protect these vital areas, COWASH utilizes Nature-Based solutions. This is why we integrate Nature-Based Solutions directly into our work.💧

🔍What is Nature-based Solutions? These are measures that protect, restore, and sustainably manage ecosystems to address different economic, environmental and social challenges. By integrating this approach, COWASH works to protect the water source before it reaches the infrastructure. Among these measures, the Watershed Management strategy is a key risk management tool COWASH directly apply by integrating it into its Water Safety Planning.📋

Why do healthy watersheds matter for WASH?

1️⃣ Sustained Supply: They regulate water flow, support groundwater recharge and improve natural storage.

2️⃣ Climate Resilience: They act as a natural buffer against extreme events like floods that can damage infrastructure.

3️⃣ Natural Purification: Healthy ecosystems filter water through biological, chemical and physical processes, protecting quality at the source.

📍COWASH Nature-based Strategy in Action: The Burqa Eresa Success Story

A powerful example of COWASH’s strategy in action is the Burqa Eresa water point in Berek Woreda, Oromia. COWASH began implementing a dedicated Watershed Management strategy here two years ago. By protecting the upstream catchment through biological and physical measures, the project has achieved:

✅ Effective Flood Management: Reducing runoff that previously threatened to damage the water point infrastructure.

✅ Water Quality Protection: Naturally eliminating potential contamination before it reaches the community.

In addition to Berek, COWASH IV is currently scaling these Nature-Based Solutions to over 60%+ of its water points across Ethiopia.

📊The Economic Reality

Research by the International Institute for Sustainable Development shows that Nature-based Solutions are not just environmentally friendly; they are also an economically smart approach.

Globally, these approaches are estimated to:

🔹 Be up to 50% cheaper than traditional human-built infrastructure.📉

🔹 Provide 28% better value for money than human-built infrastructure.📈

🔹 Meet up to 11% of total infrastructure investment needs worldwide. 🌍

By investing in nature today, we ensure safe, adequate and climate resilient water supply system for rural communities over the long term. 🚰