Handwashing Day!

Handwashing and libraries were two of the subjects up for discussion during this week’s online UK-Nigeria meeting. John Dada informed us that Global Handwashing Day falls on 15th October. A Fantsuam team member was in Kaduna to discuss Fantsuam Foundation’s participation.
John said: “We would like to raise awareness in the local schools on basic handwashing, but the schools have no running water, and some have no toilets.
“We are thinking of installing some basic but affordable hand-washing stations in a few of the schools. It’s a small step, but in the right direction.”
John explained that a good first step would be the siting of a water bottle hanging from a string, so that it tips easily for washing one's hands.

In typical John Dada and Fantsuam Foundation fashion - where there is always the drive to share and replicate - John suggested that on the global Handwashing day that it would be good to make Fola at the Ago-Are Dadamac outpost aware of this global initiative so that they too could join in the day. From this discussion came the firming up of the idea of linking Fola’s Ago-Are children with those at Fantsuam Foundation’s children’s computer club.
John said: “We are also keen to start a School Radio Program where kids will hear themselves discussing issues with other kids.
“The Children's Radio idea is nothing new. When I was in the Primary school, we used to have one lesson period during the week, when the head teacher brings a radio to our class and we all cluster around it to listen to some lessons.
“I cant recall what we heard any more, but I recall the excitement of listening to a radio and the animated discussions that followed afterwards.”
The team was in agreement that it will be good to get the children at FF and Ago-Are in contact as a future goal. This discussion is ongoing and I will let you know the eventual outcome.

Meanwhile we also learned that Comfort was still attending the VSO workshop in Abuja on ‘Growing as a Learning Organisation’.
John explained: “We believe FF is a Learning Organization, and by its very definition, it means we are still in the learning process: it never stops, it never ends.
“We want to grow the Knowledge Resource Centre (KRC) so that more members of our public will have more use of its free public access to the Internet. We think this can contribute to positive change in our communities and support development goals in vital areas
including health, agriculture, employment, and education.
“The KRC is probably the only functional public library in the Kafanchan area. There is still a lack of appreciation of the value of a library to the citizenry.”