A Year Later: Ikulya Community

A year ago, generous donors helped construct a sand dam and hand-dug well for Ikulya Community in Kenya. The contributions of incredible monthly donors and others giving directly to The Water Promise allow 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 Titus Mbithi with you.

"The distance traveled in pursuit of water has been reduced from 3 kilometers to 500 meters, which makes fetching water simple, fun and enjoyable," Mati Muthami said.

Mati Muthami pumping the sand dam's stored water from the adjacent well.

People, including Mati, say they enjoy walking to the shallow well at the dam because it is both easy to fetch water and the walk back home is faster. People suffer from much less back pain because the distance is shorter.

People who reside near the sand dam have utilized the available water by growing vegetables. For instance, there is a farmer who has planted tomatoes using the water from the well. This has earned him money and access to food that improves his diet.

Construction of the dam and 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 dam and well in Ikulya is changing many lives.

"Before the project, I had never gone to fetch water because the water points were far. Nowadays my mum sends me to fetch water at the shallow wells since it is near and I can go for many trips within a short period of time," Ngoi Musyoka, a 12-year-old boy, said.

Ngoi Musyoka

"I attend school on a daily basis, unlike before when my mum would leave me at home to go and fetch water since it took so long."

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.