PESHAWAR, Oct 30: Unicef is planning to extend the community-led total sanitation programme to other districts of the province in order to check water-borne diseases. The programme introduced by the United Nations’ Children Fund in 2004 aims at enabling communities to build toilets on self-help basis to make villages infection-free. It has been gaining currency among people who demand its extension to other districts and Fata.

Initially the programme was introduced in Takht Bhai Tehsil of Mardan district by the NWFP Local Government and Rural Development Department with the support of Unicef.

A meeting was held on Monday to assess implementation of the Unicef-supported water, environment and sanitation (WES) programme in the NWFP and Fata. The meeting was informed that the programme had been in progress in Mardan, Swabi, Upper Dir and Hangu districts besides Mohmand and Khyber agencies.

The meeting was told that under the WES programme, water and sanitation facilities had been provided and rehabilitated in over 500 schools in four districts of the NWFP and two agencies of Fata while over 700 teachers had been trained in child-to-child approach to hygiene education.

Other main activities undertaken with Unicef support include preparation of a paper on drinking water and sanitation policies, establishment of sanitation network and water quality monitoring laboratories in Hangu and Mardan.

The meeting was chaired by Secretary NWFP Local Council Board, Local Government and Rural Development Department Rehmat Ghazi. Those who attended the meeting included Chief Engineer Public Health Engineering, Works and Services Department Aslam Khan, Director Local Government Fata Siraj Ahmad, Additional Director NWFP Schools and Literacy Department Jamaluddin, Tehsil Municipal Officer, Thall, Mohammad Rehman Khattak, WES Chief Thowai Zai and WES Officers Dr Tameez Ahmad, Dr Murtaza Malik and others.