A Year Later: Tardie Community

A year ago, your generous donation enabled us to drill a well for Tardie 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 Madieu Turay with you.

This community improved the most when compared to the others we worked in last year. It has been a year since training, but we can still see tippy taps (handwashing stations), dish racks, clotheslines, kitchens, and latrines. Their water point is always clean.

We spoke with Mr. Mohamed Kamara and Fuad Kamara about some of the other changes they've witnessed over the past year.

Mr. Mohamed says there is "cleaning of the community and our surroundings every day." Mr. Mohamed says that he and the rest of the water committee are taking great care of the water point. Whenever there's an issue they can't fix, they've called our maintenance team to make repairs. The high reliability of this water point has attracted people from other communities, too.

The community has been cleaning up litter and using helpful sanitation tools to keep a healthy environment.

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 Tardie is changing many lives.

From left to right: Mr. Kamara, Faud, and Madieu Turay

"I have stopped going to the swamp to fetch water since this water well came to this community," said 19-year-old Fuad Kamara. "I have stopped going to school late." Having clean, reliable water nearby has unlocked valuable time for farmers, traders, entrepreneurs, and students.

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.