Youth-Driven Innovation in Sanitation Solutions for Maasai Pastoralists in Tanzania: Conceptual Framework and Study Design

摘要

Open defecation, poor sanitation, and hygiene are associated with transmission of diarrheal diseases, one of the leading causes of mortality in children under 5 in developing countries. The main objective of this study was to develop and evaluate an intervention called Project SHINE (Sanitation and Hygiene INnovation in Education), in which a school-based participatory science education, empowerment, and social entrepreneurship model of health promotion was used among Maasai pastoralists in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania. The aim of this approach was to improve sanitation and hygiene through engaging youth as change agents to develop and sustain locally relevant health promotion strategies. The intervention was built on formative research and workshops and consisted of school-based lessons, extracurricular activities, sanitation clubs, community outreach events, and a sanitation science fair. In this article, the background, conceptual framework, and the Intervention Mapping process used to guide the development of the study are described. The project will enhance understandings of pastoralist norms and practices related to sanitation and hygiene. The intervention and the sanitation science fair will provide a unique opportunity to build linkages between schools and the wider community and to foster youth interest in science and social entrepreneurship through innovative youth-driven projects.??