No Shit! One Latrine at a Time, the 100% WASH Impact in Mpiro

In Mpiro village, Narok County, a quiet but powerful transformation is underway, led by 34 year old Dominic Butu. As the chairperson of the water management committee, a trained Community Health Promoter (CHP), and an active member of the Village Sanitation Committee (VSC), Dominic is responsible for the wellbeing of over 100 households, and he knows each of them by name.

Just a few years ago, Mpiro was in crisis. Between 2021 and 2022, the local health facility reported an alarming spike in typhoid cases. The cause was clear: rampant open defecation, no household toilets, and widespread use of unsafe water sources. For Dominic, the news was devastating. "I was very perplexed when I learned our village had the highest number of typhoid cases. I felt powerless," he recalls.

Hope came in 2024 when the 100% WASH Project, implemented by Amref Health Africa, launched a community water and sanitation initiative in Mpiro. Dominic received training and support to lead CLTS (Community-Led Total Sanitation) efforts in the village. He mobilized his community, engaged local leaders, and began dismantling the long-held cultural beliefs that had discouraged toilet construction, like the fear of pits, often associated with death in Maasai traditions.

“At first, it was very difficult,” Dominic explains. “Many people had never even heard of toilets. Using the bushes was normal, and there were even strategies for how to do it ‘safely’.” But with persistence, the narrative began to change. He and his team worked door to door, explained the health risks, and encouraged families to take action. As of May, only 24 households remain without toilets, and most of these are already in the construction phase.

The journey wasn’t without challenges. The cost of building a toilet ranging from KES 25,000 to 40,000, was prohibitive for many. Sourcing construction materials like wood from mountain forests posed safety risks and required long treks. Transporting iron sheets from a hardware store 7 kilometers away added to the burden. Worse still, several early toilets collapsed due to unstable soil.

“We had to think fast,” Dominic says. “We adjusted the placement of the toilet superstructures to provide more stability. Since then, no latrine has collapsed, and we make sure everyone building one understands how to do it right.”

A surprising ally in this campaign has been the local school. With improved WASH facilities at Mpiro Primary, children began pressuring their parents for similar conditions at home. “They told their parents it wasn’t safe to go into the bushes anymore. That’s when we really saw change,” he says.

To accelerate progress, the village enacted a powerful rule: no social functions, like weddings or ceremonies, could be hosted in a household without a toilet. “The Maasai love to host,” Dominic laughs, “so this strategy worked very well.” Working alongside the chief, sub-chief, and elders, the committee even supported enforcement through occasional penalties. “Of course, no one likes to see a neighbor arrested, but sometimes it’s necessary for the greater good.”

Dominic is especially proud that all the constructed toilets are being used. “As a CHP, I regularly visit households. Before I sit down for tea, I ask to see the toilet. A footpath leading to the latrine tells me everything I need to know. And now, all households have them.”

Yet Dominic knows the journey isn’t over. While three villages around the school now have access to safe water, two still lag behind. “Some children drink clean water and use toilets at school, but go home to drink dirty water and defecate in the open. That breaks my heart,” he says. “As chair of the Mpiro Water Committee, I’m committed to bringing water to every household. Our children must be protected, they are the future.”