Project Status



Project Type:  Borehole Well and Hand Pump

Program: Wells for Uganda

Impact: 200 Served

Project Phase: 
Community Managed
Implementing Partner Monitoring Data Unavailable
Initial Installation: Sep 2014

Project Features


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Community Profile

Upon completion of the project, our partner in the field reports...

Community Details

The community of Maita is located in the Nyabushozi WASH Program Area (WPA). The 50 household community was previously gathering water from a hand-dug pond, which was contaminated by fecal matter from animals. This posed extreme risk to Maita residents. Diseases such as dysentery, typhoid and malaria were common, and health challenges, such as respiratory infections, were an inevitable consequence of unsafe water and poor hygiene and sanitation practices. Without proper hygiene and sanitation training and without proper sanitation facilities, open defecation was practiced. This compounded already-present health issues in the village. The community reached out to Living Water Uganda by letter with the hope of being relieved of their burden of drinking dirty water.

Upon drilling and installing the well, which benefitted a local health clinic, public market, schools and a church in addition to the 50 households, a Water User Committee was established. This committee consists of 10 individuals (5 men and 5 women). These individuals are responsible to oversee proper maintenance and operation of the pump. They are also responsible to collect economically-appropriate fees from the users to establish a savings fund for proper maintenance of the well. Living Water has agreed to support this committee for the next two years. This will ensure the long-term success of the committee, the pump, and the community’s access to safe water.

The people of Maita also heard the gospel of Christ through oral Bible storytelling. In all, 66 individuals were introduced to the love of Christ. Through a local pastor contact, Living Water will be kept informed of the spiritual development of the community as the local church continues to minister in this area.

Hygiene Promotion

In this community previously hindered by disease, over 52 people were trained in hygiene and sanitation practices. In addition to this, tippy taps were installed in households to encourage good sanitation and hygiene practices. Through the School Let Total Sanitation approach, the secondary school was targeted as a site to make free from open defecation. This effort happened through collaborative efforts of different community stakeholders in the Community Led Total Sanitation initiative. Additionally, sanitation facilities, such as pit latrines, were built in the community to help them realize the vision of ending the practice of open defecation.

Through Community Led Total Sanitation and Student Led Total Sanitation, the end goal is to make this community self-sustaining in its hygiene and sanitation efforts. The community has responded well and was anxious to be a part of the pump installation and sanitation efforts by providing materials, food, security and labor.

Community Member Interview

Kantarama Penennah is a 30-year-old subsistence farmer. She said of the new well, "I thank you for this water! The water is clean, palatable and easily accessible. You have saved us from the burden of collecting and drinking dirty water."

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Project Photos


Project Type

Abundant water is often right under our feet! Beneath the Earth’s surface, rivers called aquifers flow through layers of sediment and rock, providing a constant supply of safe water. For borehole wells, we drill deep into the earth, allowing us to access this water which is naturally filtered and protected from sources of contamination at the surface level. First, we decide where to drill by surveying the area and determining where aquifers are likely to sit. To reach the underground water, our drill rigs plunge through meters (sometimes even hundreds of meters!) of soil, silt, rock, and more. Once the drill finds water, we build a well platform and attach a hand pump. If all goes as planned, the community is left with a safe, closed water source providing around five gallons of water per minute! Learn more here!


I thank you for this water! The water is clean, palatable and easily accessible. You have saved us from the burden of collecting and drinking dirty water.

Kantarama P - Farmer

Contributors

Dr. Mio M. Fredland
Shrewsbury Borough School's Sixth Grade
Silverdale Baptist Church
PS 89 4th Grade Class
Harold Longworth Public School
3 individual donor(s)