Project Status



Project Type:  Borehole Well and Hand Pump

Program: Wells for Burkina Faso

Impact: 350 Served

Project Phase: 
Under Community Care
Initial Installation: Jun 2013

Project Features


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Community Profile

Most Yabagane residents practice subsistence farming to support their families.

When the Living Water Burkina Faso team arrived, families were depending on an unprotected well to sustain their growing water needs. The well had fallen into disrepair six times since its initial construction in 2011. Because of these water issues and the community’s practice of open defecation, families were suffering from malaria, dysentery, cholera, diarrhea and severe dehydration among other preventable water related illnesses.

During the team’s stay, community members assembled a water committee consisting of 3 men and 3 women who assisted the team with the water project whenever possible. This water committee is also responsible for collecting an annual well maintenance fee of 700CFA per person (475CFA is equivalent to $1 USD).

We installed the pump head, pump handle, pump base, rods, riser main, the drop pipe, cylinder, and chain. These new parts are all made of stainless steel.

Not only did the team restore clean water to Yabagane, but they also brought important information on hygiene and sanitation. They taught about hand-washing, how to properly transport and store water, disease transmission and prevention, how to maintain proper care of the pump, as well as signs and symptoms of dehydration and how to make an Oral Rehydration Solution. All of these lessons were taught in a participatory method to help community members discover ways to improve their hygiene and sanitation choices and implement community-driven solutions.

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Project Photos


Project Type

Borehole and Hand Pump

Girls and women walk long distances for water when safe water is very often right under their feet! Underground rivers, called aquifers, often contain a constant supply of safe water – but you have to get to it. No matter what machine or piece of equipment is used, all drilling is aiming for a borehole that reaches into an aquifer. If the aquifer has water - and after the well is developed - we are able to pull water to the surface utilizing a hand-pump. If all goes as planned, the community is left with a safe, closed water source providing around 5 gallons of water a minute through a hand-pump.


Contributors

Yakima Foursquare Church