Cases of nutrition situation in Grand Bassa County, Liberia
In an effort to raise awareness on the findings from the formative research conducted by the Liberia WASH Consortium through Concern Worldwide, Action Against Hunger and WaterAid Liberia in five counties in Liberia, the WASH Media Network of Liberia collected case studies in Grand Bassa County. The studies conducted is intended to build a solid evidence base for future interventions adapted to an in-depth understanding of the context and community priorities.
Bordering the Atlantic Coast, Grand Bassa County is among the five counties in the Research that had the highest burden of stunting in the country. The county also has challenges in food security, water, hygiene and sanitation, as well as gender, undermining child and maternal nutrition across the two livelihood zones of the county.
Rates of stunting remain chronically high, exceeding 30% in the county per the 2018 CFSNS. The Government of Liberia’s National Development Plan for 2018 – 2023 therefore includes nutrition as a priority area, with the national target to reduce stunting to 22% by 2023. Though the lifetime of the plan has not elapsed, government needs to put in more efforts considering the challenges women and children faced as indicated in the following case studies.
Recent Link Nutritional Causal Analysis (Link NCA) conducted by the LWC, shows that that 34-36 % of Liberian children are too short for their age and that the three major risk factors for stunting are low access to food, insufficient clean water for drinking and poor sanitation practices.
These findings were backed by evidences gathered from case studies during a field visit in Duhwien & Zangar’s Towns by WASH Media Network of Liberia
Duhwien Town
625 people currently live in Duhwien Town. The Town has been in existence since 1930. It does not have access to safe drinking water neither does it have any health and educational facilities. Residents of the Town can only access market, WASH and health facilities in the county’s capital-Buchanan city which is about 22 minutes’ drive away.
There are six nonfunctional hand dug wells in the town and as such, the people have no option but to drink from an unsafe water source they consider as an oracle water. They call it an oracle water because it doesn’t run dry. The water shoots out from a particular point which one has to walk through another water way to get there. Even during the peak of the dried season, the oracle water never runs dry. It always puts out water. Everyone in the town drinks from the little creek they believe to be an oracle water source, which is in the forest-25 minutes’ walk from the town. They get some of their food items like rice and other imported items from Buchanan, and the rest, mainly vegetables from the town and their farms.
The fountain (oracle water)
Hygiene in Duhwein Town
Good hygiene practice is not being observed in Duhwein Town. The surrounding of the town is not hygienic friendly.
Residents however ignore the fact of the poor hygiene condition of the town and continue to carry out their activities. The entire town is engaged into ‘potter’ (baked clay) production, a livelihood and business which seems to be the only and most popular means of survival for residents of Duhwein Town in District # 3, Grand Bassa county.
Potter is made from clay and popularly eaten by women, especially during pregnancy. They do not have a hygienic place to wet the potter before molding or drying for consumption. It is left opened at one spot and used repeatedly.
The unhygienic environment used to mould the potter
Tutu Girl Tobeh
Tutugirl Tobeh is a 33-year old woman. She lives in Duhwein Town with her fiancee. Tutu and her fiancee have five children. She gets her income from her Cassava and Rice farm and potter market. She stated that her fiancée does not support the family in terms for providing food for the family. She does everything for the family while he goes walking about on social activities. She said they eat every day but the number of times is determined by what she generates from the sales of farm products or the potter. If she earns more from the sales, it means they will eat two times and if she earns less, they eat one time a day.
Tutu Girl and her 9-month daughter
Oretha Gibson
Oretha Gibson is 40yrs. She has 6 children. The ages of her children range from 3 to 18yrs. Oretha is a single mother and independently does everything for her children. She had her children by three different fathers who do nothing for the children. The oldest of Oretha’s children is a female, Ready Gargar and she also has two children that are also being taken care of by Oretha making a total of 8 children that Oretha supports. She takes care of her grandchildren because the children’s father also abandoned them. Oretha sells food items on a small market table (petty trade) and also sells potter. The small table market and potter is her source of income. Oretha explains that the process of molding the potter is very hard but she does not have any option because her children need to eat. They eat two times if there is money and one time if the money is not available.
Oretha with children and grandchild
Children engaged into potter production
Zangar’s Town
Zangar’s Town has inhabitants of 279 people. It is about 2 hrs drive away from Buchanan city. The Town does not have safe water, improved sanitation, market and health facilities. Their health and market facilities are 2hrs walk from the town in another village. The rain water from everywhere including where they go to defecate enters the same creek they drink from. When asked about what they think about the water source, they said they are aware of the unsafe water source which usually causes waterborne diseases and high rate of diarrhea, but noted that God has been protecting them and preserving their lives. “We know the risk involved, but we don’t have option because this is the only source of drinking water for us”, residents disclosed to WASH Media in a group convsersation.
Women of Zangar’s Town going to fetch water from their only source of drinking water near their town
T-girl Joe
T-girl is 22 years of age. She has two children – one 5 months and the other, 2years. The children are supported by her mother in- law who also has seven children without a husband to help. When asked as to whether the father gives support, the father who was also on the scene boastfully said it’s his mother’s responsibility to take care of the children because she is the one who gave birth to him. Their 5-month-old baby sucks breast milk and also eats rice.
T-girl explains that when the time is getting closer for delivery, most time around 9 months, pregnant women of Zangar’s Town would have to walk for two hours to Senyeh town, where the only health facility is located, and stay some time for their delivery.
T-girl Joe with her baby
Sarah Joe
Sarah Joe is 25yrs. She is a mother of 3 children. She said that every time she gets pregnant, the children fathers leave her and go to other women and never support their children. She said if all her children had lived, she would have had six children. According to her, the father of her last child is in Monrovia and has refused to support his child. The children are supported by her father. She said she is not happy with the situation but has no option because she cannot force the men to marry her. All she needs is for them to support their children. The children eat ‘dumber’ (processed cassava) or rice in the morning. What they eat in the morning determines what they eat in the evening, according to her. If they eat dumbor in the morning, it means rice will be prepared for lunch.
Sarah Joe with two of her kids
Gwago Jacobs
Gwago has five children she stays with her fiancée and they both make farm. They grow plantain, pepper and rice. She said they eat two times when they have money. If they eat dumbor in the morning, it means they will eat rice for lunch. She also said she had to walk 2hrs hour to Senyeh to give birth. She and her family drink from the creek.
She and other women complained of unbearable living conditions in their town (Zangar’s Town) because they lack safe water, clinic and school.
Gwago Jacobs with 4 of her kids
Based on the findings of the formative research, the Liberia WASH Consortium is proposing a multi-sectoral approach in its future interventions which will lead to sustainable improvements in food security and livelihoods; access to water, sanitation and hygiene; and health and nutrition outcomes. New efforts of the LWC will see targeted communities benefitting from access to safe water & environmental hygiene, external support mechanisms integrated with savings & loans opportunities and direct improvements for food availability through household and/or community gardens. This will be in support of the national efforts to reduce stunting and malnutrition in Liberia.
