Project Status



Project Type:  Borehole Well and Hand Pump

Regional Program: Western Uganda WaSH Program

Impact: 405 Served

Project Phase:  In Service - Mar 2022

Functionality Status:  Functional

Last Checkup: 03/12/2024

Project Features


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The area around Kyabagabu is flat and fertile, covered with sugarcane plantations and maize. The community is easily accessible since it's located about 15 kilometers from Ntooma Trading Centre. In this community, the common livelihood is farming sugarcane and maize and raising cattle and pigs.

The community borehole has been broken down for the past three years, so people are always searching for water. The water found is often not enough or not suitable for drinking, cooking, cleaning, and washing clothes.

Normally community members collect water in the mornings before going to their gardens and then again in the evening. Those with children have them collect water when they are back from school in the evenings, which is tiring and dangerous. Too much valuable time is spent traveling far away in search of water and waiting in line once it's found.

James, a 12-year-old student (pictured above, in the green shirt), shared his personal experiences.

"It's true, we really have challenges. One day, one of my friends went to school with dirty uniforms, and the teacher told her to go back home," he said.

When asked why his uniform was dirty, he said that they had no water at home.

The borehole needs rehab, so the community can access clean, safe water without wasting their time, energy, and income.

We also spoke with Beatrice Nyakake about the challenges she faces as a result of her community's water crisis.

"The current water situation in this area has an impact on both our health and the daily execution of most of our activities. We resort to using dam water, which is far away. Dam water is shared by both animals and people," she said.

"It is dirty and really not good for domestic use and sometimes it changes the color of our food, especially the beans. The borehole water we find is reserved for drinking purposes. Due to long distances, we are forced to incur the cost of buying bicycles for fetching water. My children usually suffer from abdominal pains, diarrheal diseases, and I have been diagnosed with typhoid fever recently."

Here’s what we’re going to do about it:

Rehabilitated Well

We are going to restore water to the broken-down borehole. Since this water point is located at the center of the village and easily accessible by the majority of people, unlike the springs which are located at the far ends of the village, when this borehole is restored to its original status it will provide the community with easy access to clean and safe water. We will remove the old pump, clear out the well, reinstall a new stainless steel pump, and build a new well pad to protect the water.

Training

Training’s main objectives are the use of latrines and observing proper hygiene practices since these goals are inherently connected to the provision of clean water. Open defecation, water storage in unclean containers, and the absence of handwashing are all possible contaminants of a household water supply. Each participating village must achieve Open Defecation Free status (defined by 1 latrine per household) before the pump installation for a shallow hand-dug well.

This social program includes the assignment of 1 Community Development Officer (CDO) to each village. The CDO encourages each household to build an ideal homestead that includes a latrine, handwashing facility, a separate structure for animals, rubbish pit, and drying rack for dishes.

We also implement the Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) approach with each of our village partners. This aims to improve the sanitation and hygiene practices and behaviors of a village. During these sessions, village leaders naturally emerge and push the community to realize that the current practices of individual households – particularly the practice of open defecation – are not only unhealthy but affect the entire village. CLTS facilitates a process in which community members realize the negative consequences of their current water, sanitation, and hygiene behaviors and are inspired to take action. Group interactions are frequent motivators for individual households to build latrines, use the latrines, and demand that other households do the same.

Improved Sanitation

The aim is that all households own an improved latrine. Many households do not use a latrine but use the bush. Due to open defecation, feces are spread all over the village. This leads to waterborne diseases and contamination of groundwater and surface water. Our aim is that the community is able to live a healthy life free of preventable diseases. We endeavor that at the end of our presence in the community, people will have both access to sustainable, clean water and access to sanitation. We have now organized families to form digging groups for latrine construction, and empowered them with tools they will need.

Project Updates


March, 2022: Kyabagabu Well Rehabilitation Complete!

A well rehabilitated in Kyabagabu, Uganda, is already providing community members with clean, safe water! Additionally, we hosted a training where community members worked together to make a development action plan for their area. As a result, families are working to build new sanitation and hygiene facilities, tools, and habits that will help improve their living standards and enable a healthier life.


Ivan T., 15, said, "I plan to improve on my hygiene since there is reliable and safe water for bathing, washing my clothes, [and] hand washing."

Our field officer shared, "Ivan used to help his parents collect water and clean the utensils (cooking items). When he would delay at the water source due to long queues, he had to clean the utensils late and did not have enough time to rest and interact with his peers. But now, he has enough time to play due to the reliable and safe water."

Rehabilitated Borehole Well

We worked with the community to determine the best possible site for this rehabilitation. After meetings and visits throughout the community, together, we agreed that this borehole was the best option to work on.

Throughout the construction process, several households volunteered to host the drilling technicians, giving them a place to sleep and food to eat throughout their stay.

The work team pulled up the old pump, cleared out the well, reinstalled a new stainless steel pump, and built a new well pad to once again seal off the well water from surface-level contaminants.

We conducted a yield test and checked the water's quality to ensure the well's ease of access and safety. With great results, we handed over the rehabilitated well to the community. The well is already providing safe, reliable water for the community's daily use.

Farmer Erisa Katusabe, 46, said, "I have a plan of concentrating on farming instead of spending a lot of time on looking for water. After selling my farm outputs, I plan to start rearing goats, pigs, and chickens, [and the] money I will use to educate my children."

Before, Erisa would get water from the neighboring village since the existing borehole was so hard to pump and would take so long to start flowing. She had to fetch water herself since her children could not use the pump. But now, she has been relieved. Just one stroke, and water starts flowing. It's her children who fetch water, and she has enough time to do other chores at home and farming, unlike before.

Training

The first training session focused on financial planning. We mobilized the community through a series of meetings that sensitized them on the importance and purpose of saving. This included meetings dedicated to creating a community profile, where participants map the physical environment and stakeholders in their own community. We also ran a participatory vulnerability capacity assessment exercise. In this session, community members mapped out their shared risks and opportunities, including the water point breaking down.

Next, we scheduled the savings group training date with the community. We planned for a one-day training to form the savings group and discuss the best practices for maintaining and managing it.

We worked with the community to establish a Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) and a water user committee. The savings group set up a fund to provide small loans to each other and another fund they will use to pay for any repairs to the well if an issue arises. The group also agreed on a social fund that will provide grants to fellow group members and help them with funeral expenses or catastrophes such as fire damage. Our teams will provide follow-up training to support putting the savings group into practice while also offering continuous coaching in records management.

Additional training sessions focused on hygiene and sanitation at the personal, household, community, and environmental levels. In collaboration with the community facilitator and local leaders, we trained households on critical hygiene and sanitation facilities to build. These include latrines, dish racks, refuse pits, handwashing facilities, and bathing shelters. Our teams monitor these facilities' construction while helping the community learn how to best use and care for them.

Finally, we led an additional training for local artisans to teach them how to fabricate and sell locally used and accepted sanitation products that allow for more hygienic and accessible latrines.

Just as with the financial training, we will continue to support the community in their sanitation and hygiene progress through monitoring visits. In addition, we will offer follow-up assistance and refresher training to ensure community members follow through in building their new facilities and developing new habits.

Thank you for making all of this possible!




February, 2022: Kyabagabu Community Well Rehabilitation Underway!

A severe clean water shortage in Kyabagabu drains people’s time, energy, and health. Thanks to your generosity, we’re working to install a clean 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!




Project Photos


Project Type

Abundant water is often right under our feet! Beneath the Earth’s surface, rivers called aquifers flow through layers of sediment and rock, providing a constant supply of safe water. For borehole wells, we drill deep into the earth, allowing us to access this water which is naturally filtered and protected from sources of contamination at the surface level. First, we decide where to drill by surveying the area and determining where aquifers are likely to sit. To reach the underground water, our drill rigs plunge through meters (sometimes even hundreds of meters!) of soil, silt, rock, and more. Once the drill finds water, we build a well platform and attach a hand pump. If all goes as planned, the community is left with a safe, closed water source providing around five gallons of water per minute! Learn more here!


A Year Later: Water Means Improved Hygiene!

July, 2023

A year ago, your generous donation helped Kyabagabu Community in Uganda access clean water – creating a life-changing moment for Shamim. Thank you!

Keeping The Water Promise

There's an incredible community of monthly donors who have come alongside you in supporting clean water in Kyabagabu Community.

This giving community supports ongoing sustainability programs that help Kyabagabu Community maintain access to safe, reliable water. Together, they keep The Water Promise.

We’re confident you'll love joining this world-changing group committed to sustainability!

Shamim, 8, recalled what life was like in Kyabagabu before her community's well was installed last year.

"Water was in a dangerous area. It was far more than 30 minutes walk away from home, and even the source was seasonal [so] that it dried [up] during dry seasons," said Shamim.

But life is much simpler for Shamim and the other community members in Kyabagabu now.

"Collecting water is now easy since the borehole is close to our home. I can collect enough water with less fatigue. Even if I bathe so many times, my mother will not stop me because water is available and enough at all times," said Shamim.

Having ready access to water from the well has made a difference for Shamim, allowing her plenty of water for her daily needs.

"The water point has helped me improve my hygiene. I no longer go to school with dirty uniforms, and I make sure that I bathe before putting on my clean uniforms to go to school," concluded Shamim.

Thank you for helping Shamim access clean water and feel better about her hygiene so she can focus on learning while at school.

Right now, there are others just like her in neighboring communities that desperately need safe water access. Your support will immediately go to work to provide a clean water project - and we can't wait to introduce you to the next person you'll help.

Community members collect water from the well.


Navigating through intense dry spells, performing preventative maintenance, conducting quality repairs when needed and continuing to assist community leaders to manage water points are all normal parts of keeping projects sustainable. The Water Promise community supports ongoing sustainability programs that help Kyabagabu Community maintain access to safe, reliable water.

We’d love for you to join this world-changing group committed to sustainability.

The most impactful way to continue your support of Kyabagabu Community – and hundreds of other places just like this – is by joining our community of monthly givers.

Your monthly giving will help provide clean water, every month... keeping The Water Promise.


Contributors

Project Underwriter - Matching Gifts
125 individual donor(s)