A remote mountain school in Jumla is proving a simple truth: when toilets and education come together, kids stay in school and communities transform.
What we accomplished
In 2020, Manavta constructed a new sanitation facility at Namuna School in Jumla District, giving over 200 students access to functional toilets for the first time.
But infrastructure alone isn’t enough. Over time, our team noticed persistent challenges, such as children cleaning themselves with rocks and irregular handwashing habits, practices that are learned because of scarce water resources at home.
That’s why our focus is always on education, helping every student, especially girls, stay healthy, attend school confidently, and continue learning without interruption.
Building lasting hygiene habits for a cleaner, healthier school.
Breaking stigma through Menstrual Health education so girls can learn with confidence and respect.
200+ kids can now focus on staying in school rather than missing it because of menstruation or diarrhoea.
“The old toilet was unusable and students would go to the forests and nearby hills instead.”
When you fix the basics, kids show up.
We first visited Jumla in November 2019. At the time, Namuna school had about 50 children registered and only one toilet which was broken and not functioning. Students would often go to the hills on the side of the school to defecate out in the open, without clean water, privacy or safety.
This is a barrier to learning, health, and dignity.
In early 2020, we launched the “It’s Time to Give A Shit” campaign, calling on incredible people from around the world to help us build the toilets these kids deserved. We built six proper toilets and brought clean, safe water to the school. And the impact speaks for itself: by 2022, attendance had grown to over 250 students.
