Hello friends! We are well underway on pit latrine construction. We've made 41 out of 66 latrines- the concrete base and the seat- in about 3 weeks. People have been putting in a lot of work! Soon they will begin to construct their outhouses. Several other Peace Corps volunteers have come out to help for a few days of work- I thank them for that! In all, the work has been advancing more rapidly than I'd expected. We want to get much of the work in before the dry season ends in April.
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| The slab is cast beside the hole and will be located on the hole a week or more later. |
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| Writing "Cuerpo de Paz," which means Peace Corps, on the finished slab |
The participants are divided into several work groups that advance semi-independently. In some work groups, the men work on making the concrete floor slab and the women focus on the patient, fine task of making the seat. The concrete latrine seat or commode is made on-site using a technique called "ferrocement". The seat is sculpted with mortar and chickenwire on top of a mold: a cloth bag filled with sawdust or rice husks. It's a little tricky but in every work team there are several people that've truly gotten the hang of it. The technology is very replicable and accessible, and teaches new skills and confidence while saving money, compared with a manufactured seat bought from the hardware store.
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| preparing the formwork |
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| plastering with concrete |
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| Moises plasters the seat |
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| This seat is nearly finished: putting the finishing touches on the inside before mortaring it to the slab. |
In Ngäbe culture, certain tasks are "men's work" and others are "women's work." Men cut and burn fields to prepare for planting, do heavy work and house construction, and make woven hats. Women wash laundry, cook, care for children, and make clothing and crocheted bags. Both genders share in planting the fields, weeding and harvesting the crops. It's interesting that even in the new task of making the latrines, the groups have decided what is men's and women's work. The latrine seat requires patience and attention to detail, similar to making handicrafts. I'm glad that the women are finding the confidence to work on a construction project!
Another feature of Ngäbe society is that work is very communal. Friends and extended families traditionally work together on agriculture, and we've adapted that idea for working with latrines. The ideal outcome of the project will be when the newly trained households share their experience with neighbors to encourage more people to make latrines.
