Gbaneh Bana SLMB Primary School
Project Snapshot
Country: Sierra Leone
GPS Coordinates:
Latitude 8.671230
Longitude -13.180417
Impact:
Total Served: 400
Status: Completed (?)
Completion Date (or estimate): 05/01/2010
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The community of Gbaneh Bana is located in the Port Loko district of Sierra Leone. The pump was installed by Oxfam in 2004. There was no follow up so the pump has been spoiled for three years. The sucker rod was disconnected, the pipes at the bottom of the well were rusted through. The water in the well was red because of the rusty pipes. The old pump was pulled and a new Afridev pump was installed. For three years, this school went without water, so the whole community had to get water from
a stream. Most of the waterborne illnesses from the stream were dysentery and malaria. Most people in the community earn a living through teaching, farming, gardening, fishermen, tailors and trading. The community helped out with the project by providing labor. When the project was complete, the community established a point person to be the caretaker of the well.
Testimony from a community member: Michael Sesay, 37 year old teacher spoke with the team about the water needs. “The stream is dirty and the well water is pure. Thank you!”
WATSAN Training:
In addition to the lessons of germs/disease transmission proper care of the pump and keeping the water clean, the Three Legged Stool lesson was taught, as well as discussing the importance of using toilets. Good News bracelets were made with the children.
LWI-SL is a partner with UNICEF and 41 fifth and sixth grade girls received menstrual hygiene training as part of getting this information all fifth and sixth grade girls across the country.
Project Photos
Country Details
Sierra Leone
- Population: 9.7 Million
- Lacking clean water: 47%
- Below poverty line: 70%
- Climate: Tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season; winter dry season
- Languages: English, Mende, Temne, Krio
- Ethnic Groups: 20 African ethnic groups 90% (Temne 30%, Mende 30%, other 30%), Creole (Krio) 10%
- Life Expectancy: 48 years
- Infant Mortality Rate: 155 deaths per 1000 live births
Partner Profile
Living Water International
Nearly 20 years ago, we set out to help the church in North America be the hands and feet of Jesus by serving the poorest of the poor. 600 million people in the world live on less than $2 a day. 884 million people lack access to safe drinking water.
For all practical purposes, these statistics refer to the same people; around the world, communities are trapped in debilitating poverty because they constantly suffer from water-related diseases and parasites, and/or because they spend long stretches of their time carrying water over long distances.
In response to this need, we implement participatory, community-based water solutions in developing countries. Since we started, we’ve completed water projects for 7,000 communities in 26 countries.
It all began in 1990, when a group from Houston, Texas traveled to Kenya and saw the desperate need for clean drinking water. They returned to Houston and founded a 501(c)3 non-profit. The fledgling organization equipped and trained a team of Kenyan drillers, and LWI Kenya began operations the next year under the direction of a national board.
That pattern continues today; we train, consult, and equip local people to implement solutions in their own countries.
Remembering the life-changing nature of that first trip in 1990, we also lead hundreds of volunteers on mission trips each year, working with local communities, under the leadership of nationals, to implement water projects. It’s hard to know which lives are changed more—those “serving” or those “being served.”
Our training programs in shallow well drilling, pump repair, and hygiene education have equipped thousands of volunteers and professionals in the basics of integrated water solutions since 1997.
