Oxfam

Background In refugee settings, safe and private access to sanitation is often constrained by overcrowding and limited infrastructure. While coverage indicators such as toilet availability are often used to monitor progress, they do not capture users lived experiences. The Sanitation-related Quality of Life (SanQoL-5) index measures individual sanitation experiences across five dimensions: privacy, safety, disgust, shame, and disease risk. This study assessed sanitation access and SanQoL-5 among refugee populations in Gambella, Ethiopia, and identify factors associated with variation in SanQoL-5. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional, representative survey across two refugee settlements in Gambella, Ethiopia, a region hosting approximately 42% of the country's total refugee population. Data were collected on sanitation access, facility type, location and characteristics, alongside experiential outcomes using SanQoL-5 (scored 0–1; higher scores indicate better quality of life). Generalised linear regression models were used to explore associations between SanQoL-5 scores, and hypothesised factors, including gender, facility type and location, construction quality, and cleaning arrangements. Analyses were stratified by toilet location (on- or off-compound) following evidence of effect modification. Results 764 respondents participated, of whom 307 (40%) reported access to a sanitation facility. Among toilet users, 36% (n = 110) used pit latrines and 64% (n = 197) urine-diverting dry toilets (UDDTs). The remaining 457 (60%) respondents reported practising open defecation (OD). Mean SanQoL-5 scores were higher among toilet users (SanQoL-5 0.60, 95% CI: 0.58–0.62) than those practising OD (SanQoL-5: 0.25, 95% CI: 0.23–0.28). Toilet location emerged as a determinant of SanQoL-5, with higher scores observed for toilets located outside household compounds. Among toilets located within compounds, users of pit latrines reported slightly higher SanQoL-5 scores than users of UDDTs (β = 0.04, p = 0.057), while no such differences were observed for toilets located outside compounds. Female respondents consistently reported lower SanQoL-5 scores than males regardless of toilet access, type, or location. Conclusions Sanitation coverage was low, with 60% of respondents reporting no access to a sanitation facility. SanQoL-5 varied widely by toilet access, toilet location, and gender, while sanitation facility type played a more limited role, illustrating the value of measuring experiences as well as infrastructure. This study represents the first application of SanQoL-5 in a humanitarian setting, demonstrating its feasibility and utility in refugee populations. From an operational perspective, improving access to sanitation and optimising toilet location may yield greater gains in user experience than facility type alone in refugee settings.

This is a corrigendum for the article "Bridging the Technical Gap: A Unified Representation Framework for Voice-based Community Engagement Platforms" published in Proc. ACM Hum.-Comput. Interact. 9, 7, Article CSCW277 (November 2025), 39 pages.

A curriculum is essential for quality learning and relevance of education to a society’s development needs. In 2007, Uganda introduced thematic curriculum at P-1 to P-3 level, with the purpose of improving quality and relevance of learning outcomes. This paper assesses the effect of these reforms on learning among lower grade learners in Uganda and proceeds to make policy recommendations that could improve curriculum implementation in the country. A qualitative research approach was used targeting government practitioners across the education value chain, comprising of curriculum developers, examiners, primary school teacher college tutors, quality assurance officers, education administrators and primary school early grade teachers. Data was collected using 15 key informant interviews, focus group discussions, and analyses of documents on student performance. Results indicate that P-3 literacy improved from 10% in 2013 to 39.5% in 2021 while numeracy improved from 8% to 20.8% over the same period. Use of local language simplified concepts, non-textbook materials promoted incidental learning while Center Coordinating Tutors (CCT) support improved teacher preparation and lesson planning. Diagnostic and continuous assessment revealed low performing areas for improved instructional design and planning. Thematic learning areas enabled learning integration with living experiences and the class teacher system positively impacted affective learning due to bonding and familiarity between learners and the teacher. Implementation has had challenges of large classroom sizes, teacher capacity, adoption of local language and inelaborate implementation framework. This paper makes policy recommendations relating to teachers’ professional development, school-based curriculum implementation, language, content and methods of instruction, teaching and learning materials, performance assessment and an agenda for decolonizing education in Africa.

Measuring pasture quality by drying, grinding and laboratory analysis is expensive and time consuming. Some commentators have suggested using Brix (a measurement of soluble sugars used in wine and fruit industries) to estimate the feed value of fresh forages. However, there is little data on how useful Brix measurements are in determining pasture quality. This study compared Brix measurements to standard laboratory measurements of pasture quality for five pasture treatments: ryegrass/clover and a multi-species mixture, each harvested to 8 and 20 cm, and plantain/clover harvested to 20 cm, across three sampling dates between October 2021 and January 2022. Plant species and their physiological state varied across pasture treatment and date and resulted in variation in Brix and laboratory measures of quality. Metabolisable energy(ME) declined but Brix values increased between October and January as pasture changed from a vegetative to a reproductive state with seedheads. There was a positive relationship between Brix and dry matter percentage (Brix = 1.49 + 0.40 × DM%, R2 = 72.1%). There was no consistent relationship between Brix and ME, neutral detergent fibre, acid detergent fibre and water-soluble carbohydrate contents. This severelylimited the use of Brix in determining pasture quality.

HCI practitioners in development contexts utilize collaborative digital technologies for community engagement in international development, often mediated through platforms like social media, tele-conferencing, and Interactive Voice Response (IVR). However, the lack of standardized representation approaches for these platforms impedes effective communication among stakeholders. We propose a unified graphical framework for characterizing and representing collaborative platforms, focusing on audio/voice-based engagements. Our framework segments community engagement sessions into engagement formats, characterizing them with preconditions, configurations, and outputs, and visualizes them using state machine-based representations. A field study demonstrates the framework's effectiveness in supporting stakeholder communication for real-life scenarios. We contribute to CSCW literature by providing a standardized approach that offers a common framework/language for discussing, developing, or reconfiguring collaborative platforms. Our findings show that this framework enables non-governmental organizations and researchers to navigate under-explored design spaces, enhancing the utilization of voice-based platforms for engaging distributed marginalized communities.