Households’ access to basic sanitation services and associated factors in Geshiyaro project study sites in Ethiopia

Abstract

Abstract Background Access to basic sanitation services is essential to enhance public health and well-being. However, ensuring adequate sanitation coverage is difficult in many parts of Ethiopia, including the Geshiyaro Project implementation sites. The Geshiyaro project is part of monitoring and evaluation activities aimed at assessing access to water and basic sanitation services. Hence, research on access to basic sanitation services and the associated risk factors in the Geshiyaro project sites is lacking. Thus, the purpose of this study was to fill this gap. Methods A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from June to July 2023. A total of 7995 households were included in this study. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the data. STATA version 16 was used to conduct both descriptive and multivariable analysis. Results The study reported that 8.4% of households had basic sanitation services. The following factors were significantly associated with the availability of basic sanitation services: residence (AOR = 0.31, 95% CI 0.25–0.37), education (AOR = 1.36, 95% CI 1.12–1.66), occupation (AOR = 0.44, 95% CI 0.33–0.57), annual income (AOR = 0.66, 95% CI 0.55–0.80), age (AOR = 1.77, 95% CI 1.10–2.84), awareness creation about WASH services (AOR = 0.58, 95% CI 0.49–0.70), family size (AOR = 1.22, 95% CI 1.01–1.46), and water source type (AOR = 0.27, 95% CI 0.13–0.57). Conclusion Households’ access to basic sanitation services in Ethiopia’s Geshiyaro project site is a significant public health concern. Many factors that affect access to basic sanitation services have been identified. The study highlights the importance of targeted interventions to address sociodemographic disparities and improve sanitation facilities. Similarly, the findings of this research will contribute to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) target 3.3 to eradicate the epidemics of AIDS, neglected tropical diseases, tuberculosis, and malaria, as well as combat hepatitis and water-borne illnesses and Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) target 6.2, which deal with the elimination of open defecation, access to sufficient and equitable sanitation and hygiene for everyone, and reducing infectious diseases.

Keywords

• Sanitation
• Access
• Household
• Geshiyaro-project
• Associated-factors
• Ethiopia