A Year Later: Improved Hygiene and Health!

Forty-nine-year-old farmer Simon Munyoki recalled what life was like in the Kaghui Community before his community's sand dam was implemented last year.

"Getting water in the past was very frustrating because it was more than one kilometer away, and we only had to depend [on] saline water drawn from the unprotected well. This would lead to long queues, and alternative sources like scoop holes would quickly dry up because of the immense drought. My children had to bear with the poor hygiene conditions at home because the little available water had to be used sparingly. They also [had to] survive on one meal per day because my wife would spend most of the day fetching water. The available water was also unclean and exposed us to water-related infections like typhoid, diarrhea, and amoeba," said Simon.

Collecting water is now much better for Simon and the other community members in Kaghui.

"Water is now close to my home and only takes a few minutes to fetch," shared Simon.

"Our health has improved because we are now drinking clean water available from this water point. We are also taking more than a meal per day because there is enough water for cooking and my wife is able to cook because she is not spending most of her time fetching water. I am very glad that my family and I are healthy and no longer exposed to exhaustion from long walks or infections like typhoid and amoeba. I am also able to conduct personal hygiene because we have enough water," continued Simon.

Having ready access to water from the sand dam has made a difference for Simon, allowing him to focus on improving his family's future.

"I do not spend much time looking for water since this water point is close to my area. This has also offered more time to focus on preparing land, planting, and irrigating trees. I am planning to cultivate more crops and vegetables because I now have water to irrigate them. I will be selling the produce [to] earn an income. We will also be selling water from this water point to other community members at a reasonable fee," Simon said.

Clean water flowing.