A Year Later: St. Patrick's Ikonyero Secondary School

October, 2018

Students at St. Patrick’s Ikonyero Secondary School used to waste time each morning collecting water from the nearby primary school, but now they have water on their school grounds that not only meets their daily needs, but provides enough for the school agricultural club to raise crops!

A Year Later: St. Patrick's Ikonyero Secondary School


A year ago, generous donors helped construct a rainwater catchment tank for St. Patrick's Ikonyero Secondary School 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 Faith Muthama with you.


The students at St. Patrick's Ikonyero Secondary School now have ample time to read when they come to school first thing in the morning. This is because they no longer have to go to the nearby primary school to collect water each day.

"Since the school got the tank, I have had ample time to read without being disturbed to go to the primary school to water," 16-year-old student Valentine Modi said.

"We get to school early in the morning at 6:00 am without any stress of having to carry water from home."

Valentine Modi runs the tap to show us how well it's still working

The school right now has a clean environment including the classrooms, thanks to the water tank that was constructed at the school. The students are using the water to wash the classrooms and the latrines. Furthermore, the water is helping agriculture students do their project work. They use the water to irrigate their crops.

"As an agriculture student, tank water helps us to irrigate our farm. This has improved our interest in the subject because we can work on respective topics practically," Valentine said.

Construction of the tank 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 tank in St. Patrick's Ikonyero Secondary School is changing many lives.

Due to the improved water, sanitation and hygiene standard in the school, the enrollment increased by 285 students within one year. The institution is now rated well in terms of discipline and performance in Kakamega County. And its relationship with the neighboring primary school has improved, too.

"Since the school got the 50,000-liter tank, they no longer go to the primary school to get water. They use the water from the tank to serve the school in all areas where water is needed, such as cooking and cleaning the classrooms," school cook Patricia Owano explained.

Patricia Owano and Valentine Modi

"Consequently, the project has reduced the dependence of the secondary school on the resources from the primary school. This has boosted a good relationship between the two institutions."

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.



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