Making Inclusion Meaningful: The Human Centred Design Approach to Building Latrines for People with Disabilities in Vanuatu

This case study documents findings from the Laetem Dak Kona (LDK) Project which was implemented by World Vision Vanuatu and partners in the two northernmost provinces of Vanuatu (Sanma and Torba), with funding from the Australian Government’s Water for Women Fund. The focus of this study is on efforts to improve inclusion and wellbeing of people with disabilities in Vanuatu. Actions were taken to uncover taboos and unspoken challenges faced by people with disabilities in Vanuatu to raise awareness, acceptance, inclusion and the voices of people with disabilities and other vulnerable groups at the grass roots level. Successful adaptations included adopting a human-centred design approach that focussed on developing sanitation facilities which met the individual needs of people with disabilities and their families and included them in the decision- making process. Sufficient budget was allocated to ensure increased costs were covered, such as multiple visits to target sites, as well as transportation of materials required. Purposeful recruitment of people with disabilities on the project team made a difference to the engagement and acceptance of people with disabilities in target communities. Development of a range of knowledge sharing behaviour change communication resources such as talking books was particularly useful in the target communities with low literacy levels.