Mt Hagen, WHP; Wednesday 9th December; Building of safer toilets with tippy taps is vital for rural communities to be healthy and safe from harmful sicknesses. A community leader John Dupi from Pupral in Western Highlands Province emphasized this when referring to his newly built toilet with a tippy tap that was built with help through the European Union-UNICEF PNG Government WASH Project. “In the past, we didn’t know to build safer and proper toilets even-though we had all the necessary bush materials to build toilets, we thought defecating in the bushes was better,” “even handwashing was not a concern for us, we did not know that this was contributing to our sicknesses through the flies that sit on the feces and contaminate our food resulting in sickness,” Dupi stressed. Dupi said, however, through the EU_UNICEF PNG Government WASH Project and it’s implementing partners continues awareness in our community, we learn t about the impacts of our actions. “Now my son knows the importance of hand wash, sickness does not affect my wife and we don’t have to travel distance for medical assistance constantly’, he said. “I thank the European Union and UNICEF for this vital project that is changing communities and lives. I also encourage other communities in the province to build proper toilets and safer toilets like what my community has done, “ he added. Dupi’s community, Pupral was recently certified as self-declared Open Defecation Free (ODF) by the WASH project implementing partners Care International PNG. Dupi’s household is among over 30 households with 169 community members that each have a safer toilet and tippy taps. Pupral is one of the communities among 200 others in the Hagen Central district to be certified as self-declared ODF.