In Juaso, a rural town in Ghana’s Ashanti Region, 16-year-old Ama Koomson* stands by a new tap, hands slick with soapy water, confidently demonstrating proper handwashing. Behind her, the newly inaugurated Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) facility at her school gleams in the sun, a stark contrast to the school’s past sanitation infrastructure.
Until recently, Ama and her 450 schoolmates relied on a dilapidated four-unit pit latrine, which was shared among boys, girls, and teachers. The toilets lacked water, privacy, hygiene, and dignity, particularly for girls managing their periods. “The old facility was very unhygienic,” Ama says. “There were no handwashing stations and no place to change during menstruation. Girls would miss school, and it affected our studies.”
Across low- and middle-income countries, inadequate WASH services remain a critical barrier to girls’ education. According to UNICEF, nearly 1 in 3 schools globally lack basic sanitation services, and 23% of girls in sub-Saharan Africa drop out of school due to menstruation-related challenges. The implications are generational, missed education limits future earning potential, widens gender gaps, and reinforces cycles of poverty.
Recognising this, WSUP, with support from the One Foundation, implemented a school-focused WASH project aimed at transforming sanitation delivery in New Juaso. The result: a 14-seater, gender-separated toilet facility with a dedicated mechanised borehole, handwashing basins, changing rooms, a shower block, and accessible features for physically challenged students and staff.
“This isn’t just a toilet, it’s a strategy for long-term change,” said Samuel Owusu-Adjei, Project Lead, WSUP Ghana. “We design these systems not just to be built, but to be sustained through community ownership, student engagement, and ongoing maintenance support.”
Indeed, the sustainability model is built in. Ama was selected to join the school health committee and trained in hygiene promotion, operations, and maintenance. She’s now a peer educator, teaching classmates and helping lead a facility management plan that includes community resource mobilisation. “I feel responsible,” she says. “We’ve learned how to keep it working — and we want it to last.”
The impact was immediate. With access to clean, safe, and private sanitation, girls are attending school more regularly. Teachers report improved punctuality and engagement. Ama notes that even the youngest girls feel more comfortable asking for help or accessing menstrual products, which are increasingly being discussed in the school health club.
Access to safe water and sanitation is not only an SDG 6 target, it’s also a catalyst for multiple development outcomes, including education, health, and gender equality. And yet, according to the WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme, only 57% of schools in sub-Saharan Africa have basic sanitation services. The need is vast , and so is the opportunity for impact.
WSUP’s approach — combining infrastructure, behaviour change, and local ownership — represents a replicable model for other communities. But scaling this model will require more than technical expertise. It needs committed funding partners who believe in systemic, long-term change.
“Everything changed when this new WASH facility was built,” Ama says. “I can be in school every day of the month now, without fear or shame. I feel clean, safe, and proud.”
Her story is one of thousands and it’s a reminder that a girl’s future can be shaped by something as basic, and powerful, as a toilet. With more support, WSUP can bring this transformation to many more schools and communities like Juaso. Donations help fund sustainable, inclusive WASH infrastructure and equip girls like Ama with the dignity and confidence to stay in school and thrive. To contribute, visit Charity – WSUP