Josephine Finds Joy in Farming, Thanks to Clean Water!

Last year, your gift unlocked the potential for a brighter future for Josephine. Since then, she and the Emwaku Community of 700 residents have had clean, reliable water. Your contribution has made a significant impact. Thank you for making a difference!

"My health has changed, and I don't fall sick as much. I used to pay for someone to bring me water, but now I can access it with ease, so I have saved money and improved my small-scale farming."

Before the Spring Protection

Like many women in Kenya, 62-year-old Josephine Malala, a farmer, 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.

The spring before protection.

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 Josephine, in particular, accessing the spring was a treacherous affair, often resulting in injury.

"Water used to be very difficult to collect, and I would fall down, and because of that, I could not fetch water as needed, and so I used to pay someone to fetch water for me," said Josephine.

Even though Josephine had others collect water for her so she wouldn't injure herself, she still suffered consequences from consuming the water. "I was falling sick after drinking the water, which was contaminated. Stomachaches and typhoid used to be frequent," exclaimed Josephine.

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 Josephine’s future. By supporting the water solution, you made clean water an everyday reality, fostering hope for a brighter future.

The protected spring.

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!"

"It's faster now as compared to the way it was before. It used to be time-consuming, unsafe around the spring, and also, liver fluke would attack, so fetching water wasn't so pleasing before," Josephine shared.

The Future is Looking Bright!

A year ago, you made a difference for Josephine 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 Josephine 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 her fulfill her dreams.

"Water has made it possible to do my poultry farming, cattle, and goat keeping. I have been able to save money and planted Napier grass, which helps me with my livestock, so I don't have to spend on livestock feeds. I have been able to save money, and I have added to my livestock, including goats and cattle. Sometimes, I wasn't able to do [so] for years because I used to spend a lot on water and going to the hospital to treat water-related illnesses," said Josephine.

"I would like to continue improving my small-scale farming and ensure that my family is safe when it comes to finances and food. I love farming because it's very reliable and the biggest income-generating activity [for] me," she declared.

Josephine tends to her cattle.