Parents raise alarm over full latrines at Zombo School, 1,800 learners affected

Zombo: Parents of learners at Padea Primary School, a government-aided institution in Zombo District, West Nile Sub-region, have appealed to district leaders to urgently address a sanitation crisis after the school’s two latrine blocks filled up, leaving more than 1,800 learners without functional toilet facilities.

The crisis has forced pupils to seek alternative facilities in a nearby bush and at Ayaka Chapel, raising concerns about hygiene, disease outbreaks and disruption of teaching and learning.

The school has only two latrine blocks, each with four stances for boys and girls, constructed in 2017. Both facilities are now full, leaving the school struggling to provide adequate sanitation for its growing population.

Christopher Oyirwoth, the LC I chairperson of Juba Cell, where the school is located, described the situation as dire and called on the district leadership to intervene.

“The school infrastructure has improved, but the major challenge is the latrine… latrine… latrine. For once, why can’t the district come and rescue our learners here? The situation is terrible for us who see learners struggling here,” Oyirwoth said.

Juliet Oroma, the vice chairperson of the School Management Committee, said the lack of functional facilities had forced some learners to resort to open defecation or use unsafe alternatives.

“This situation, particularly during rainy weather when the facilities overflow with maggots and contaminated effluent, makes many of our children abandon the school,” Oroma said.

David Oyirwoth, a catechist at Ayaka Chapel, said the church had been overwhelmed by pupils seeking to use its limited sanitation facilities.

“As the church, the situation is getting worsened every day. You find all these learners are going to access our facility, which is of a small capacity. It is also getting full. We request the government to come and assist the school,” he said.

Established in 1973, Padea Primary School is the only government-aided primary school in Padea Town Council. It serves learners from the town, neighbouring Abanga and Jangokoro sub-counties, as well as parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Charles Orach, the teacher in charge of health at the school, said the sanitation crisis was affecting attendance, with some pupils reluctant to return to class because of the unpleasant conditions.

Anthony Mungujakisa, the school’s Director of Studies, said sharing limited sanitation facilities was interfering with learning.

“We are getting challenges when it comes to sharing sanitary facilities with learners. At times, some of them are abandoning classes. We really need support,” Mungujakisa said.

Head teacher Jimmy Bithum said the school lacked the funds to construct new latrines or empty the existing ones.

“The school completely lacks the funds to construct or empty the latrines. The town council tried to extend some funds but was cut short. We are really stuck as a school,” Bithum said.

He added that restrictions on charging additional fees under the Universal Primary Education programme had further limited the school’s options for raising emergency funds.

Padea Town Council LC III Chairperson Melki Onyutha Orwothowun also described the situation as alarming, saying the local leadership was struggling with limited resources.

District promises intervention

Zombo District Vice LCV Chairperson Hassan Ringtho acknowledged the severity of the problem but said the district was considering assistance in the next financial year.

“We have just been in a meeting with some development partners and we laid many of our challenges. We are hopeful that the Padea issue will be addressed in the next financial year,” Ringtho said.

He described the situation as concerning and alarming, although he did not provide a specific timeline or funding commitment for the intervention.

Zombo District LCV Chairperson James Oruna Oyullu also acknowledged the sanitation challenges facing Padea Primary School, noting that similar problems affected other schools across the district.

Meanwhile, Zombo Assistant Resident District Commissioner Bruno Mananu urged the school and district authorities to plan for an immediate response to prevent the situation from deteriorating further.

The crisis comes despite Zombo District allocating Shs18.86 billion to the education sector in the current financial year. The allocation caters for salaries of primary and secondary school teachers, district education staff and tutors, alongside infrastructure projects, including classrooms, offices, stores and VIP latrines in selected schools.

However, it remains unclear whether Padea Primary School will benefit from the planned sanitation infrastructure projects.

Girls face additional challenges

The lack of functional sanitation facilities also raises concerns about menstrual hygiene management for adolescent girls, who require clean and private facilities to manage their periods while at school.

To support affected learners, Bithum said the school had established a facility stocked with sanitary pads, underwear, soap and other essential supplies for girls who had begun menstruating.

However, the supplies do not resolve the shortage of functional latrines and adequate washing facilities.

Uganda’s Ministry of Education and Sports recommends a pupil-to-latrine stance ratio of 40:1, a standard that the school’s eight existing stances cannot adequately meet given its enrolment of more than 1,800 learners.

The situation at Padea Primary School highlights the need for urgent investment in school sanitation, particularly in rural government-aided institutions where limited funding and growing enrolment continue to strain existing facilities.

Parents and school leaders are now calling for immediate intervention to restore safe sanitation and ensure that learners can attend lessons without being forced to seek alternatives outside the school.

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