EVALUATION OF SOCIAL-ECONOMIC RETURNS ON INVESTMENT AMONG HOUSEHOLDS BENEFIARIES OF COMMUNITY-LED-TO-TOTAL SANITATION IN BUSIA COUNTY, KENYA

Background: About 21 million Kenyans use unsanitary or shared latrines while 5.6 million have no latrine at all and defecate in the open. Busia County was among the counties with the lowest (42%) sanitation coverage compared to National level of 49%, with more than half of the population defecating in the open. Diarrheal and cholera were among the top three diseases causing morbidity and mortality in the County, with cholera outbreaks frequently being reported. In December 2012, Kenya government and UNICEF jointly implemented a pilot Community-Led-Total Sanitation Intervention (CLTSI) in Busia County to tame poor sanitation. The CLTSI was to achieve total sanitation among Busia County households through sanitation behavior change. To assure sustainability of sanitation behavior change, there was need to identify the specific attributable value of CLTSI to beneficiaries of Busia County. This study aimed at evaluating the social-economic returns on investment (SROI) among household beneficiaries of CLTSI in Busia County. Methods: Quasi Experimental Stdy design was used to collect data before(baseline) and after (Outcome) for CLTSI implementation while multi stage-random sampling was used to sample 459 houselds from villages that CLTSI had been implemented and certified to have achieved total sanitation in Busia County. SROI methodology was used to establish Social-economic value added to residents of Busia County by CLTSI. Results: SROI value added to Busia County residents was KES 1: 10.5 meaning that every KES invested it created a Social-economic value of KEES 10.5 to Busia residents. Conclusion: That CLTSI should be rolled out Country wide with a view of improving level of sanitation and hygiene.