July, 2020: COVID-19 Prevention Training Update at Kaketi Community

Our teams are working on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic. Join us in our fight against the virus while maintaining access to clean, reliable water.

We are carrying out awareness and prevention trainings on the virus in every community we serve. Very often, our teams are the first (and only) to bring news and information of the virus to rural communities like Kaketi, Kenya.

We trained community members on the symptoms, transmission routes, and prevention of COVID-19.

Due to public gathering concerns, we worked with trusted community leaders to gather a select group of community members who would then relay the information learned to the rest of their family and friends.

We covered essential hygiene lessons:

- Demonstrations on how to build a simple handwashing station

- Proper handwashing technique

- The importance of using soap and clean water for handwashing

- Cleaning and disinfecting commonly touched surfaces including at the water point.

We covered COVID-19-specific guidance in line with national and international standards:

- Information on the symptoms and transmission routes of COVID-19

- What social distancing is and how to practice it

- How to cough into an elbow

- Alternative ways to greet people without handshakes, fist bumps, etc.

- How to make and properly wear a facemask.

During training, we installed a new handwashing station with soap near the community’s water point,

Due to the rampant spread of misinformation about COVID-19, we also dedicated time to a question and answer session to help debunk rumors about the disease and provide extra information where needed.

Water access, sanitation, and hygiene are at the crux of disease prevention. You can directly support our work on the frontlines of COVID-19 prevention in all of the communities we serve while maintaining their access to safe, clean, and reliable water.

February, 2020: Kaketi Community Sand Dam Complete!

Kaketi, Kenya now has access to a new source of water thanks to your donation. A new sand dam was constructed on a sandy riverbed, which will build up sand to raise the water table and naturally filter water.

"We are very proud of ourselves for completing this project as we were very eager to begin the whole construction process since the first day. Now that we have attained water, we are certain that the prior struggles that were encountered such as trekking for long distances, digging extremely deep scoop holes to fetch water, and long queues are now stories of the past," said Benson Ndaka, a local farmer who helped with the construction.

We worked with the Kalawa People Living with HIV Self-Help Group for this project. The members and their families contributed materials and physical labor to complete the project. In addition, they were trained on various skills such as bookkeeping, financial management, project management, group dynamics, and governance. We also conducted a hygiene and sanitation training to teach skills like soapmaking and to help improve behaviors such as handwashing.

When an issue arises concerning the water project, the group members are equipped with the necessary skills to rectify the problem and ensure it works appropriately. However, if the issue is beyond their capabilities, they can contact our team of field officers to assist them.

"We are very excited and grateful for this project," said Mr. Ndaka.

Sand Dam

The community members collected all of the local materials like rocks and sand that were required for the successful completion of the dam. They also provided labor to support our artisans. The collection of raw construction materials takes longer than the actual construction. For a large sand dam, materials collection could take up to 4 months.

Siting and technical designs were drawn and presented to the Water Resources Management Authority and a survey sent to the National Environment Management Authority for approval before construction started. Once approved, we established firm bedrock at the base of the sand dam wall. In the absence of good bedrock, excavation is done up to a depth at which the technical team is satisfied that the ground is firm enough to stop seepage.

Then mortar (a mixture of sand, cement, and water) is mixed and heaped into the foundation. Rocks are heaped into the mortar once there is enough to hold. Barbed wire and rebar are used to reinforce the mixture.

Once the foundation is complete, a skeleton of timber is built to hold up the sludge and rocks above ground level. The process is then repeated until a sufficient height, width and length are built up. The vertical timber beams are dismantled and the dam is left to cure.

This dam measures 44.6 meters long and 4.8 meters high. It took 663 bags of cement to build.

Sand dam construction was simultaneous to the construction of a hand-dug well, which gives locals a safer method of drawing water. As the sand dam matures and stores more water, more of it will be accessible as drinking water from the well. To see that hand-dug well, click here.

As soon as it rains, the dam will begin to build up sand and store water. With this water, the surrounding landscape will become lush and fertile. However, it could take up to 3 years of rain for this sand dam to reach maximum capacity.

New Knowledge

The trainer conferred with the field staff about their previous visits to households and interviews with community members to determine which topics the community still could improve upon.

The 3-day training took place in the homestead of Benson Ndaka, the group's Chair. The presence of the rains made the community consider the use of a tent in a bid to accommodate everyone in a safe and conducive environment free from rains and cold weather. The environment was conducive and quiet for the learning and training purposes. Attendance was better than expected with members of the self-help group at the training as well as a village administrator, the Chief, Sub-Chief, and village elders.

They decided to train on topics including health problems in the community; good and bad hygiene behaviors; how diseases spread and their prevention; choosing sanitation improvements; choosing improved hygiene behaviors; planning for behavioral change; handwashing; and soapmaking.

All of the members of the group made the training lively through group discussions, asking questions, and airing their views and opinions. The members were excited because they were now more aware of the risks exposed through bad hygiene practices.

"This training really enlightened us on how to improve our standards of hygiene and sanitation, prevent diseases, enhance the community’s capacity to educate each other on prevention of diarrhoeal diseases, and the management and protection of water and health facilities," said Mr. Ndaka.

Soapmaking was one of the most popular topics we covered. We thoroughly discussed the purposes of soap in our homes, its medical uses, the ability to clean their clothes, and the ability to disinfect their surroundings from harmful bacteria and dirt. The topic was special because the members learned the importance of using the products at home. They learned how to make soap for handwashing and for cleaning at home. With the new knowledge, people can produce soap for themselves and even sell some for a small profit to other community members.

Thank you for making all of this possible!

January, 2020: Kaketi Community sand dam underway!

A severe clean water shortage in Kaketi Community drains people’s time, energy, and health. Thanks to your generosity, we’re working to install a reliable water point and much more.

Get to know this community through the introduction and pictures we’ve posted, and read about this water, sanitation and hygiene project. We look forward to reaching out with more good news!