Pupils of the Ho Airfield Basic School have lamented the unavailability of sanitation facilities in the school and how it is affecting their hygiene, especially that of females.

They indicated that due to this development, they are unable to change their sanitary towels during their period while in school, an occurrence they fear may affect their health.

Some of the pupils who spoke to Joy News lamented how they were exposed to reptiles and other dangers using nearby bushes to defecate.

A Basic 7 pupil, Fevi Gershon, indicated that they have on several occasions encountered snakes and scorpions in the bush.

“I remember my friend was bitten by a snake when we were in class 5 and he had to be rushed to the hospital”, he recounted.

Teachers are neither left out, as the only available place for them to use as a place of convenience is the bush, which equally disgusts the pupils, who say their teachers are “are not setting a good example.”

Another worrying development is female pupils not being able to practice proper menstrual hygiene because the school does not have a sanitation facility.

Female pupils lament how they are unable to change their pads during school hours, because there are no private places provided for such use.

"As a girl, when you have your menses, you need to change your pad, but we don't have any place. You cannot stand infront of the school and change it, it is not good. We need a private place to use, so you as a girl, you will not change it, until you get home", she said.

This development defeats the government’s aim to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, as it is widespread in public schools across the country.

The pupils raised the concern when Syldem Company Limited took its Hygiene Drive to the school, as part of its corporate social responsibility.

The Managing Director of Syldem Company Limited, Sylvia Demenya, lamented that the unavailability of sanitation facilities would affect the teaching of personal hygiene in schools.

She detested the phenomenon of children and teachers being exposed to dangers as they are deprived of a basic need in the school.

She therefore launched a bid to raise funds to construct a sanitation facility for the Ho Airfield Basic School and entreated the government and philanthropic organisations to lend support.

Syldem Company Limited as part of its corporate social responsibility is undertaking a campaign targeted at promoting personal hygiene in schools, especially those in rural communities in the Volta Region.

Aside from educating learners, the company distributed some of its products to the learners to enhance their personal hygiene.