A Year Later: St. Michael Emakwale Secondary School

A year ago, generous donors helped build a rainwater catchment system and latrines for St. Michael Emakwale Secondary School in Kenya. Because of these gifts and contributions from our monthly donors, partners can visit project sites throughout the year, strengthening relationships with communities and evaluating the actual water project. These consistent visits allow us to learn vital lessons and hear amazing stories – we’re excited to share this one from our partner, Jemmimah Khasoha, with you.

Life has changed drastically at this school. No longer do they have to hire community members to shuttle water from the spring to sustain them through the dry months. Students who study agriculture use the water from the tank to irrigate their crops so that they can harvest more to get good grades. The school compound is clean and smart, for there are now dustbins at every class door and within the compound at specific places - no litter can be seen anywhere.

The crops that the agriculture students are responsible for. They use water from the tank to water these.

Jemmimah met with Teacher Erick Malenya to talk about what he's experienced this past year. He told us, "The biggest change experienced is availability of water throughout the term. This has helped us run daily activities without struggle. The classes are clean, and the problem we used to have of sickness due to dust is no more. We are very very grateful for your support."

Rosemary, Teacher Erick, and Jemmimah.

17-year-old Rosemary Kilonzo represented the students by saying that her life had indeed changed. "Initially we wasted time lining up for water, but now it's not a challenge. A big improvement is with my health: I would have stomach pains and diarrhea every week because I was not able to wash my plate and cup after meals... there just wasn't enough water in the school." That is no longer the norm for Rosemary and hundreds of other students.

The Water Project and our partners are committed to consistent monitoring of each water source. Our monitoring and evaluation program, made possible by monthly donors, allows us to visit communities up to 4 times a year. Read more about our program and how you can help.