About the Web Site

The WASH in schools web site has been developed by IRC and UNICEF and is an addition to the School Sanitation and Hygiene Education (SSHE) web site of IRC, which was launched in 1999. It serves as a discussion forum and an information exchange platform for sector professionals working in the field of WASH in Schools.

The web site is also the home of the WASH in Schools Thematic Group and is linked to the FRESH, Focusing Resources on Effective School Health, framework.

The FRESH partnership includes UNICEF, UNESCO, UNAIDS, WFP, World Bank, WHO, FAO, EDC (Education Development Center), RBM (Roll Back Malaria), UNODC, PCD (Partnership for Child Development), EI (Education International), IRC (International Water and Sanitation Centre) and CTC (Child-to-Child).

Linked to IRC SSHE web site and World Bank/WSP/UNICEF Toolkit

The WASH in Schools web site is interlinked with two other existing web sites:

1. The joint SSHE web site of UNICEF and IRC.
   This web site started originally with the initiation of the UNICEF/IRC Global SSHE Programme in 1999. Since the launch of the revised WASH in Schools web site, mid 2006, the SSHE web site focuses on IRC related WASH in schools issues.
2. The Toolkit on hygiene sanitation & water in schools.
   Developed by the World Bank in cooperation with WSP and UNICEF. The web site focuses mainly on the how of WASH in schools. It also provides links with background reading. It serves as a extended source of information for anyone looking into the practicalities of setting up WASH in schools programmes.

From SSHE to WASH in Schools

We have chosen the name WASH in Schools, not only to differentiate from the IRC SSHE web site, but also to link to the global 'WASH in Schools' initiative, a joint UNICEF/WSSCC initiative that stems from the global WASH Water, Sanitation and Hygiene campaign.