A Year Later: Baya Community

A year ago, your generous donation enabled us to drill a well for Baya Community in Sierra Leone. The contributions of incredible monthly donors and others giving directly to The Water Promise allow our local teams to visit project sites throughout the year, strengthening relationships with communities and evaluating the water project over time. These consistent visits allow us to learn vital lessons and hear amazing stories – and we’re excited to share this one from local team member Edward Amara with you.

The average living standards in Baya have tremendously improved since the project last year. After speaking with several people and touring a bit of the village, we discovered that people really embraced the hygiene and sanitation training. People know how to take care of their personal hygiene as well as their environment.

We spoke with Headman Momoh Sillah and young Masaio Sillah about the changes they have witnessed in Baya.

"Over the past years, our women and children used to go all the way to the swamp to fetch water which was not even pure for human consumption. As a result of that, a lot of diseases like cholera and diarrhea used to kill the people in this village," Headman Sillah recounted.

"But since the time when they completed this water project, we have pure drinking water which has helped us greatly from getting the above-named diseases. These are some of the biggest changes in this village. "

Headman Sillah

Construction of the well is only one step along the journey toward sustainable access to clean water. The Water Project is committed to consistent monitoring of each water source. Our monitoring and evaluation program, made possible by donors like you, allows us to maintain our relationships with communities by visiting up to 4 times each year to ensure that the water points are safe and reliable.

This is just one of the many ways that we monitor projects and communicate with you. Additionally, you can always check the functionality status and our project map to see how all of our water points are performing, based on our consistent monitoring data.

One project is just a drop in the bucket towards ending the global water crisis, but the ripple effects of this project are truly astounding. This well in Baya is changing many lives.

"As a school pupil I was really happy about that particular development because, before this time, we normally struggled a lot to get water which was not even pure for human consumption," Masaio agreed.

Masaio Sillah at the well in Baya Village

"For the past years, we used to go to the swamps very early in the morning to fetch water for our home before we go to school. Also, after school in the afternoon hour, we go down to the swamp again to fetch water. On one occasion one of our peers was bitten by a snake," Masaio continued.

"All these issues were difficult, but now life has completely changed because we have pure water in our village."

This is only possible because of the web of support and trust built between The Water Project, our local teams, the community, and you. We are excited to stay in touch with this community and support their journey with safe water.

Read more about The Water Promise and how you can help.