Maud Makura, 33, from Chidya Village in Gutu District, faces daily challenges as she cares for her three children: two with bedridden disabilities, ages 11 and 3, and a 13-year-old who is able-bodied. Living in abject poverty, her household lacks basic sanitation facilities, forcing her to improvise. She disposes feacal waste from her children’s nappies into an anthill hole, she then covers the waste with ashes, a sanitation measure she learnt during Water, Sanitation and Hygiene triggering sessions, conducted by the Tsungai Project.
Maud is grateful for these sessions, which have empowered her to adopt better sanitation practices while she awaits the Tsungai Project’s commitment to build a toilet for her household, she has already taken steps to improve her sanitation standards.
Maud was selected by her community to benefit from the model toilets from Tsungai. The selection criteria prioritized extremely vulnerable households, and she qualified. The community assisted her to dig a latrine pit and mobilize river sand, pit sand and bricks.
However, the health conditions of her two bedridden children significantly impacted her life especially during the past farming season, leaving her with little time to tend to her small field. This lack of attention contributed to a meagre harvest in the 2024/2025 harvest season, adding to her struggles on food security while she tries to balance her responsibilities.
Despite these hardships, Maud is determined to enhance her family’s circumstances by having a kitchen garden. She starts to fetch water for it by 05:00 am from the nearest water source which is about 6 km away. She is motivated by the hope of providing fresh vegetable soup for her children, who cannot chew solid food. Additionally, she plans to sell some of the produce for income.
In the midst of hardships Maud is determined to be making a change in her life. She expresses gratitude to Tsungai for empowering her with sanitation knowledge, which has improved her waste management techniques. It is important to note that the current practice of using the ant hill hole is only a temporary measure; otherwise, Maud looks forward to the model toilet that Tsungai is going to construct at her homestead and encouraged her to boost her family’s nutritional needs through gardening. Although her garden is still in its infancy, she remains hopeful it will fulfil her aspirations.
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