Kamukithe Community 1B

Project Status

Project Type: Dug Well and Hand Pump

Regional Program: Southeastern Kenya WaSH Program

Impact: 300 Served

Project Phase: In Service - Feb 2025

Functionality Status: Functional

Project Features

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The 1500 residents of the Kamukithe Community struggle to access water daily since they rely on scoop holes in a dry river bed. The water source is far away, overcrowded, and contaminated.

Field Officer Alex Koech shared about the community's water situation. "The scoop hole offers little water during the long drought periods, which culminates into long queues. It is also not protected; thus open to animal and wind contamination, which exposes residents to infections such as typhoid, amoeba, dysentery, and other water-related infections. The water is also not sufficient for the entire population; thus, residents have to wake up early to fetch water because even the neighboring communities depend on water from this water point."

"The water we drink is not clean because animals excrete at the water source, which exposes us to infections like typhoid and amoeba," said 36-year-old farmer Lazarus Mwendwa, shown below collecting water.

"This area is prone to long drought periods, which causes the scoop hole to offer little water. Residents from far away also come here to draw water during peak drought periods because scoop holes near their homes dry up," Lazarus said.

"Water is life. It means a lot to me as a farmer because I need water to earn an income. Without water, I will not be able to provide food for my family, and my children will be sent home for school fees," concluded Lazarus.

"Residents who live far away have to walk several kilometers to get water from the current water points while carrying 20-liter jerrycans on their backs or donkeys. This is a time-consuming and tedious task under the scorching sun, which leaves less energy and effort to conduct activities such as improving hygiene and sanitation, farming, or studies for pupils and students," continued Alex.

As Alex noted, adults are not the only ones who struggle; the children in the community have difficulty concentrating and studying at school because they lack sufficient water and spend so much time attempting to collect back-breaking amounts of water.

"The students do not have enough water to drink at school, and their energy and time are consumed by fetching water. This has culminated into several school drop-outs and dismal academic performance, hence [the] inability to access better career opportunities and livelihoods," said Alex.

"Fetching water takes a lot of my free time and energy making it difficult to focus on my studies. Sometimes I go back to school in the morning without attempting my homework," said 14-year-old Penniah, seen below scooping water.

"It feels bad to go and fetch water whenever I am not in school. I return home feeling very frustrated and unable to concentrate on my studies," concluded Penniah.

Community members like Lazarus and Penniah need a reliable, safe water source close to their homes. Then, they will be able to quickly collect water that will not harm them and still have the time and energy to complete other important things to have a brighter future.

Helping to solve the water crisis in this community will take a multi-faceted system. It requires the collaboration of the hand-dug well and a sand dam. They will work together to create a sustainable water source that will serve this community for years to come.

Note: Our proposed water point can only serve 300 people per day. We hope to continue working with this community to identify other water solutions that will ensure all of the people in this community have access to safe and reliable drinking water.

The Proposed Solution, Determined Together...

At The Water Project, everyone has a part in conversations and solutions. We operate in transparency, believing it benefits everyone. We expect reliability from one another as well as our water solutions. Everyone involved makes this possible through hard work and dedication.

In a joint discovery process, community members determine their most advantageous water solution alongside our technical experts. Read more specifics about this solution on the What We're Building tab of this project page. Then, community members lend their support by collecting needed construction materials (sometimes for months ahead of time!), providing labor alongside our artisans, sheltering and feeding the builders, and supplying additional resources.

Water Access for Everyone

This water project is one piece in a large puzzle. In Kenya, Sierra Leone, and Uganda, we're working toward complete coverage of reliable, maintained water sources that guarantee public access now and in the future within a 30-minute round trip for each community, household, school, and health center. One day, we hope to report that this has been achieved!

Training on Health, Hygiene & More

With the community's input, we've identified topics where training will increase positive health outcomes at personal, household, and community levels. We'll coordinate with them to find the best training date. Some examples of what we train communities on are:

Improved hygiene, health, and sanitation habits
Safe water handling, storage & treatment
Disease prevention and proper handwashing
Income-generation
Community leadership, governance, & election of a water committee
Operation and maintenance of the water point

Project Updates

February, 2025: Kamukithe Community Well Complete!

The Kamukithe Community in Kenya now has a new water source thanks to your donation! We constructed a new hand-dug well adjacent to a new sand dam on the riverbed. The sand dam will raise the water table and naturally filter water, while the well will provide a safer method of drawing drinking water for the community.

It could take up to three years of rain for the sand dam to reach maximum capacity because sometimes it only rains once a year in this region! As the sand dam matures and stores more sand, the surrounding landscape will become lush and fertile, and the well will fill with water.

"This waterpoint is close to my home, and I will easily fetch water here rather than spend several hours walking to the distant scoop hole. I will also be drinking clean, safe water from the well, which will prevent exposure to water-related infections. I will also get time to study and play with my friends because I will not be walking far to draw water," shared 15-year-old Peter.

15-year-old Peter.

"I will have more time to study now that I will not be going far to fetch water and ultimately improve my grades. I will also be drinking safe water, which prevents exposure to water-related infections; hence, I will be attending school every day," he continued.

Hand-Dug Well Construction

Construction for this well was a success!

We delivered the experts, materials, and tools, but the community helped get an extraordinary amount of work done, too. They collected local materials to supplement the project, including sand, stones, and water. When all the materials were ready, it was time to dig in!

First, we excavated a hole seven feet in diameter down to the recommended depth of 25 feet. The well lining was constructed using brick and mortar with perforations to allow water to seep through. Now that the well is finished, sand builds up around its walls, which will filter the water stored behind the dam.

Once the well walls and lining were complete, we laid a precast concrete slab on top and joined it to the wall using mortar. The concrete dried for two weeks before installation.

Next, the mechanics arrived to install the well pump as community members watched, learning how to manage simple maintenance tasks. We installed the pump level with the top of the sand dam. As the dam matures, sand will build up to the top of the wall. Until then, people will use concrete steps to get water. After installing the pump, we gave the well another few days to dry.

The well is complete!

For this project, we worked with the Wikwatyo wa Ithengeli Self-Help Group. The members and their families contributed tremendous amounts of materials and physical labor.

Community Education

Our trainer worked with the field staff and community members to determine which topics the community could improve upon.

As we’ve worked with this Self-Help Group in the past, we asked them about the subjects they needed refresher training on.

Twenty-three community members participated in the training, led by facilitator Veronica Matolo, who shared valuable insights about its success.

"The participants demonstrated a high level of commitment and enthusiasm for the hygiene training. They actively engaged in the learning process, appreciated the clear and understandable explanations, and contributed to discussions. Their willingness to adhere to the set training norms and participate in practical activities such as water treatment and tippy tap construction highlights their dedication. The use of visual aids and a welcoming environment further motivated them to understand and reflect on their behaviors."

Tippy tap training.

We trained the group on various skills, including bookkeeping, financial management, project management, group dynamics, and governance. We conducted hygiene and sanitation training to teach skills like soap and detergent-making and improve habits such as handwashing.

We covered health problems in the community, good and bad hygiene habits, and the prevention of disease. Finally, we covered natural resource management as well as the operation and maintenance of the sand dam.

"In the 3 days, I have really learned a lot that will help me transform my life as well as the lives of others. Like for instance, water treatment; the different methods of water treatment that have been taught to us will help in [the] prevention of waterborne diseases, and we promise to improve hygiene and prioritize water treatment to reduce diseases," 36-year-old Lazarus Mwende, chairperson of the Self-Help Group shared.

Lazarus Mwendwa.

"This training will be of great importance in our lives and will really bring us change. We’ve learned that it’s good to eat a healthy meal to prevent malnutrition and boost our immune system. The knowledge of disease prevention and control is also important. Having sanitation infrastructures will help us so much in [the] prevention of diseases. [The] lack of these infrastructures puts our health at risk. Proper food handling and cleanliness of utensils will also help in disease reduction. There's a sense of independence in the skill of [making] soap and latrine disinfectant that has been taught, and it will really help in changing our lives as well as the finances in our homes. It will also help in improving our hygiene since we’ve learned that soap can be used to perform different tasks. Health is wealth," he concluded.

Thank you for making all of this possible!

December, 2024: Exciting Progress in Kamukithe Community!

We’re thrilled to share that, thanks to your generous support, significant change is coming for the entire Kamukithe Community. Construction has begun on the dug well project, bringing them one step closer to having clean, reliable water.

But that's not all—during construction, we’re also providing vital health training. These sessions equip the community with essential hygiene practices, ensuring that the benefits of clean water extend to lasting health improvements.

We’re so grateful for your role in making this possible. Stay tuned for more updates—soon, we’ll be celebrating the arrival of safe water in Kamukithe Community!

Project Type

Hand-dug wells have been an important source of water throughout human history! Now, we have so many different types of water sources, but hand-dug wells still have their place. Hand dug wells are not as deep as borehole wells, and work best in areas where there is a ready supply of water just under the surface of the ground, such as next to a mature sand dam. Our artisans dig down through the layers of the ground and then line the hole with bricks, stone, or concrete, which prevent contamination and collapse. Then, back up at surface level, we install a well platform and a hand pump so people can draw up the water easily.