Emily Farms Successfully!

Your gift last year unlocked Emily's potential for a brighter future. Since then, she and the 350-resident Kanyoeni Community have had clean, reliable water. Your contribution has made a significant impact. Thank you for making a difference!

"It is very easy now to fetch water. It only takes a few minutes, which is much faster than before when we would spend almost an entire day fetching water and coming back home."

Before the Sand Dam Installation

Like many women in Kenya, 55-year-old farmer Emily Mutua is responsible for collecting water to meet daily water needs. Before last year’s water intervention, this task stole her time and negatively affected her.

Before the sand dam, people walked long distances to collect water.

Drinking the water caused severe consequences. Many in the community suffered from waterborne diseases that created health problems, affecting their daily lives. Limited accessibility also meant people wasted time collecting sufficient water to meet their needs. The difficult journey to collect water sapped their physical and emotional energy, creating roadblocks. For Emily, in particular, it lessened her opportunity to complete her daily tasks.

"We did not have enough water in our village, and we had to walk several kilometers to draw water from scoop holes in the Thua River. This was very exhausting, and we would return home unable to focus on activities like household duties or farming. During the drought period, the water in the scoop holes would reduce in quantity, which led to long queues leading to time wastage. Due to the prevalent water shortage, we had to use water sparingly at home, which negatively impacted hygiene chores. The water from scoop holes was also easily contaminated by animal and human activity, which exposed us to water-related infections like stomach upsets and dysentery," shared Emily.

Since the Sand Dam Installation

Your generous gift last year was much more than a simple donation; it was a powerful statement about your commitment to this community and Emily’s future. By supporting the water solution, you made clean water an everyday reality, fostering hope for a brighter future.

Reliable and clean water lays the groundwork for improved health, education, and economic possibilities, allowing people to thrive. We frequently hear from those we interview that "water is life!"

"We easily fetch water here to irrigate our vegetables. We [can] now irrigate our vegetables, which has boosted our health because we have enough water. We have been able to grow tomatoes, kale, and bananas and even set up a tree nursery because we have enough water throughout the dry season. We even sold the tomatoes and accumulated about ksh3000 ($23 USD)," said Emily.

The Future is Looking Bright!

A year ago, you made a difference for Emily and the rest of her community. This is just the first chapter of their story as access to clean water continues to improve their lives!

At The Water Project, we value sustainability and want to ensure that people continue to thrive. We commit to monitoring this project to ensure the water is always flowing and safe to consume. We inspect the system hardware, track water availability, conduct sanitary inspections, and collect water quality samples to identify risks. We work with our team on the ground to resolve them.

You gave Emily a crucial tool for achieving her dreams: access to clean water. Together, we can excitedly expect that with this precious resource, her enthusiasm and courage will help fulfill dreams.

"I hope that we will be [able] to plant more vegetables in [the] future, and once we sell the produce, we will be using the funds to buy a generator to pump water for irrigating the farm. The availability of water from the implemented project will enable us [to] do more farming since it is nearby, and we now have a lot of time on our hands."

A member of the self-help group waters the garden.