Evaluating Effects of School Based Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Programs on Adoption of Safe Water Systems Among Households in Rachuonyo South Sub-County, Homa Bay County, Kenya.

Abstract

Despite on-going efforts by CARE Kenya to enhance access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) in schools across Homa Bay County, the impact of these interventions on household-level water safety practices remains insufficiently understood. Without adequate empirical evidence on the effectiveness of school-based WASH programs in influencing household behaviour, it is difficult to design integrated, sustainable strategies for improving water safety in the broader community. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of school-based water, sanitation and hygiene programs on adoption of safe water systems among households in Rachuonyo South Sub-County, Kenya. The objectives of the study were; assess the effect of school-based hygiene programs on adoption of safe water systems; examine the effect of school-based sanitation programs on adoption of safe water systems; determine the effect of school based safe water programs on adoption of safe water systems and establish the intervening effect of pupils’ level of knowledge on the relationship between school-based WASH programs and adoption of safe water systems. The study was guided by three theories Planned Behaviour theory, Social Learning theory and Diffusion of Innovation theory and a descriptive survey design was adopted. The study targeted population of 571 school pupil’s representative of households, the study sample size of 115 households, 6 teachers and 3 county officials. It used structured questionnaires for primary respondents and in-depth interview guides for key informants and analyse data collected using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) 25. The study revealed that households in Rachuonyo South Sub-County heavily relied on unimproved water sources, with 95.7% using unprotected wells, 88.7% rivers/streams, and only 10.4% accessing piped water. Despite this, safe water practices were widely adopted 85.2% boiled water, 73.9% filtered, and 67.0% used chlorine tablets while 54.8% stored water in covered containers with taps. School-based programs proved influential, as 91.4% of households received water safety information from children, confirming pupils as effective change agents. Sanitation practices were similarly strong, with 99.1% having latrines and equal knowledge of handwashing procedures, though only 60% washed hands after toilet use and 56.5% before food preparation. Pupils demonstrated high awareness of hygiene-related diseases—53% cited typhoid/cholera, 33% diarrhoea and 91.3% shared safe water messages such as “always treat drinking water” with families. Overall, 89.6% of households agreed that children’s information improved hygiene at home, while adoption was enabled by affordability (88.7%) and availability (88.1%) of treatment products. However, barriers such as perceptions of water being “already safe” (39.1%) and time-consuming treatment (28.7%) persisted. The study concluded that school-based WASH programs significantly improved household adoption of safe water systems but recommended expanding access to improved water infrastructure, promoting consistent treatment practices, and integrating parents into school hygiene campaigns. Further, subsidizing treatment products and addressing misconceptions were advised to sustain behavioural change, while future research should examine gender dynamics in knowledge transfer and long-term sustainability of safe water adoption.