Beatrice Grows Vegetables and Thrives!

Last year, your gift unlocked the potential for a brighter future for Beatrice. Since then, she and the Mwikabaniro Community of 140 residents have had clean, reliable water. Your contribution has made a significant impact. Thank you for making a difference!

"It takes me a very short period of time [to] fetch water and go back home. This water is not open to contamination; thus, [it is] clean and safe."

Before the Spring Protection

Like many in Kenya, 62-year-old Beatrice Ongaya is responsible for collecting water to meet her daily water needs. Before last year’s water intervention, this task stole her time and negatively affected her.

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 Beatrice, in particular, it lessened her opportunity to stay healthy and find time for all of her daily tasks.

"Before protection, this water point was open to contamination. This water looked dirty and cloudy and drinking this water made me sick always. Much money was used for treatment, which is now channeled to other things because [I] am no longer facing health issues after its protection," said Beatrice.

"Also, collecting water from this water point was very difficult due to [the] lack of [a] staircase, and we used to scoop water using jugs. Because it was an open source, algae were all over, and we could not be careful enough, thus scooping algae. This was very dangerous to our health. It was also time consuming and much time was wasted on fetching water."

The spring before protection.

Since the Spring Protection

Your generous gift last year was much more than a simple donation; it was a powerful statement about your commitment to this community and Beatrice’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!"

"This water has helped me with so [many] accomplishments. I have a vegetable kitchen garden; thus, I am not spending any money on buying vegetables from the market. My neighbour has also used this water for brickmaking. She has baked the bricks ready for house construction and it only happened because we have water. On income-generating activity, I am able to make soap and use [it] at home," said Beatrice.

Bricks made by Beatrice's neighbor.

"We also have a chlorine dispenser, and with chlorine, we are sure of clean drinking water." Beatrice continued.

Beatrice uses the chlorine dispenser, an added safeguard for the spring water.

The Future is Looking Bright!

A year ago, you made a difference for Beatrice 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 Beatrice 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.

"When I face a challenge or have an issue with this water point, I will report to the field officer, but so far, so good. I have not encountered any issues since this water point was protected!" said Beatrice.

Beatrice declared, "I have a dream of planting vegetables during dry seasons and [to] sell to people. This will only come true because of this water so that I can use it in watering my vegetables."