October, 2018: A Year Later: Conakry Dee Community

A year ago, your generous donation enabled us to restore water to Conakry Dee Community. The contributions of incredible monthly donors and others giving directly to The Water Promise allow our local teams to visit project sites throughout the year, strengthening relationships with communities and evaluating the water project over time. These consistent visits allow us to learn vital lessons and hear amazing stories. Read more...

November, 2017: Conakry Dee Community Project Complete

Conakry Dee Community, Sierra Leone now has a well that provides clean water throughout the year, thanks to your donation! Hundreds of people are no longer stranded without clean water during the dry months. Hygiene and sanitation training was also conducted, which focused on healthy practices such as washing hands and using latrines. This water and new knowledge give the community a great foothold in eliminating water and sanitation-related illness. Please enjoy this update detailing all of the work that was done in Conakry Dee Community, and be sure to check out the tons of new pictures!

Thank You for unlocking potential in this community. You made clean water a reality, and now you have a chance to make sure it keeps flowing. Join our team of monthly donors and help us, our caretakers, and our mechanics maintain this well and hundreds of other projects!

Project Result: New Knowledge

The hygiene work plan was created based on the information gathered during the baseline survey. The schedule for the three days' training was agreed upon during our first community engagement meeting. Appropriate dates and times were set, and a follow-up call was made before the actual day.

The chief took responsibility for passing this message on to the whole community for them to be made aware. Over 100 people gathered together under a mango tree on the first day to learn about hygiene and sanitation. On the second and third days, we moved under a hut by St. Peter's Church, since rain was looming.

Participants pose for a group picture after the first day of training.

Some of the topics covered during training were as follows:

– How to wash hands, and how to build a hand-washing station from a jerrycan, string, sticks, and netting

– Good and bad hygiene practices

– Dish racks and how to build them

– Keeping animals under control

– Management and maintenance of the hand pump

There was a demonstration with the trainer walking around shaking hands with all the participants. Each individual noticed a glittery shine on their hands after the handshakes. This introduced a practical lesson: What are you seeing on your hands? They answer by saying “we are seeing shine-shine on our hands,” and that’s when the facilitators bring home the idea that these signify germs. We are always vulnerable to them, and need to keep clean by practicing good personal hygiene. This set us up for a strong transition into how to make hand-washing stations.

A woman practices at the hand-washing station she made.

Diagrams portraying unhealthy practices such as walking barefoot, open defecation, outdoor urination, and eating with unwashed hands were all shown and discussed in groups. What behaviors make a community healthy, and what others are counterproductive?

Children helping the trainer by holding up pictures illustrating different good and bad sanitation practices.

The final day, we continued these types of discussions. While on the first day we had led people through hand-washing station construction, this third day was similar in that we elaborated on the need for and the viability of building other sanitation facilities like latrines, dish racks, and animal pens. We taught participants what materials to use, proving that even the poorest family can afford to build at least a traditional pit latrine.

55-year-old Yeabu Kanu was moved to express her impression of hygiene and sanitation training. "Basically, the practice of hygiene has not been a priority to us living at the wharf. We hardly practice hygiene in this community. Everybody does what they feel like doing. Open defecation is a big problem in the community. The health condition around the wharf area is very poor and we are at high risk because of no discipline and control. We spent almost half of our income on medication because of the poor hygiene been practice in the community. So the hygiene training has come at the right time! It corrected most of our unhealthy practices that we have been used to in the community. I personally have learnt that I should be accountable for what I do and that I should be an example to others in applying the hygiene principles I have learnt," she shared.

Yeabu Kanu

Project Result: A Reliable Water Well

We spearheaded a new method of converting the bottom of a hand-dug well into a borehole. When we started this process, the well was at 63 feet deep with three feet of water. At this time of the year, community members were only able to draw one or two containers of water before the well needed rest. In a few more weeks, the well would have been completely dry.

The team set up the tripod and pulley over the well. Depending on the diameter of the well, the team either drills from inside the well or from ground level. The team worked from ground level here in Conakry Dee, which also allowed for the hand-pump to remain installed and usable. Since drilling was done within a new temporary casing, it didn’t affect the existing well or its water quality at all.

First, they installed 6″ PVC casing through the hatch cover down to the bottom of the well. This ensured that the drilling began straight and also kept the hole from collapsing. They connected the bucket auger drill bit to the drilling rod and lowered it into the well, continuing to add more drill rods until they hit the bottom. Each drill rod is 18 feet in length and every time the team empties the bucket auger, they must reverse the process by disconnecting the rods until the drill bit can be emptied. This method is more labor intensive, but working from the top was much safer in this circumstance. There are different drill bits for different conditions, a special bit just for clay, one for sand, one for rocks and one combination bit for all three conditions.

Drilling

The team met sand all the way to 83 feet, which is a great sign because it's both clean and allows water to freely flow through it.

They lowered 18 feet of casing slotted for screen down to 80 feet, and then dumped seven buckets of filter pack between the two casings. The team could then hoist out the temporary casing.

Iron rods were cemented into the well lining and attached to the casing to support the weight of the PVC and keep it straight from bottom to top. The team welded a collar in the pump base to further support the casing.

The well was developed by bailing; two men bailed by hand for four days to ensure proper development. The well could then be tested by installing a submersible pump at 75 feet and using it for one hour. The team measured the discharge, which was 520 gallons. We are excited that the static water level at 60 feet deep remained the same throughout the entire test. Thus, the yield is 32 liters per minute.

Measuring the water levels

With this great success, we could build a new walled well pad and install the new stainless steel hand-pump.

Installing an India Mark II pump

Even though it was rainy outside, people gathered at the well to celebrate clean, sustainable water. We brought the music, but the people brought dancing and singing. After a bit, we quieted folks down and reviewed pump management and maintenance with them and went over a few key hygiene and sanitation practices. One of the field officers asked the community what they learned during training, and a middle-aged woman threw up her hands and said, "We learned to wash hands with soap and water, and to cover our toilets after using them!" People also had the chance to step forward and express their gratefulness for this amazing work.

Mrs. Isatu Kamara said, "As a woman, we mostly use water in large quantity. We use it in different areas like cooking, taking care of ourselves, and our children. I am very much grateful for helping us to have access to safe, pure drinking water."

October, 2017: Conakry Dee Community Project Underway

Conakry Dee Community will soon have a source of safe and clean water that works year round, thanks to your generous donation. A well that is dry for months at a time is being deepened, and a new pump installed. The community will also receive training in sanitation and hygiene. Imagine the difference these resources will make for this community!

We posted an initial report from our partner in the field including an introduction to the community, maps, and pictures. We’ll keep you updated as the work progresses.

Thank You for caring for the thirsty!