ASSESSMENT OF SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT PRACTICE AND ASSOCIATED FACTORS AT HOUSEHOLD LEVEL IN HARAMAYA SUB-CITY, MAYA CITY, EASTERN, ETHIOPIA

Abstract

Background: With increasing urbanization and population growth, solid waste management become a significant challenge globally, especially in developing countries like Ethiopia. Despite efforts to address this issue, solid waste management remains a problem in many urban areas, including Haramaya Sub-city, where inadequate infrastructure, low public awareness which leads to environmental and public health risks. In Ethiopia there were many studies conducted on solid waste management practice and associated factor, which had variation from region to region in terms of year, sample size, factor assessed. Therefore, there was a clear gap, this study aims to assess household practices toward solid waste management, and the factors associated with these practices in Haramaya Sub-city Objective: To assess household practices toward solid waste management and factors associated with these practices in Haramaya Sub-city, Eastern Ethiopia from May 1 to 30, 2025. Method: A Mixed Method was used; for quantitative study, community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 362 household holds selected by simple random sampling in Haramaya Sub-city. Pretested-structured questionnaire was used to collected data from participants through face-to-face-interview. Data was coded and entered into EpiData version 3.1 and exported to SPSS version 20 for analysis. Descriptive statistics was used to describe the characteristics of participants and determine households Practice. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses was done to identify factors associated with household solid waste management practice Adjusted odds ratio (95% Confidence Interval) was used to report association and statistical significance declared at P<0.05. Key informant interview and focus group discussion was used for qualitative study and NVivo 14 software was used for the analysis to identify coding and themes. AOR: 2.80; 95% CI: 1.47–5.36 Results: Around, 35.5% (125 households) demonstrated proper SWM practices while other percent was improper solid waste management practice and factors such as age [(AOR = 2.12; 95% CI: 1.12–4.02]. Educational status [AOR: 2.06; 95% CI: 1.05–4.06], income [AOR = AOR: 1.98; 95% CI: 1.04 3.77], occupation (AOR: 2.47; 95% CI: 1.06–5.74, ) knowledge on solid waste management practice [AOR = AOR: 2.80; 95% CI: 1.47–5.36] and Attitude (AOR = 4.10, 95% CI: 2.25–7.80) were factors xii significantly associated with solid waste management practice of households at "P-value < 0.05 "with 95% CI. Conclusion and Recommendation: The study found that most households in Haramaya Sub city have work out improper solid waste management, influenced by factors such as age, education, income, awareness, knowledge and attitude. To enhance practice of solid waste management usage, stakeholders including the Haramaya Sub-city municipal head Office and health office, community leaders, NGOs, and local authorities should focus on improving awareness and knowledge about practice of solid waste management.