Project Status



Project Type:  Borehole Well and Hand Pump

Program: Wells for Kenya

Impact: 500 Served

Project Phase: 
Community Managed
Implementing Partner Monitoring Data Unavailable
Initial Installation: Nov 2014

Project Features


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Community Profile

This project is part of Bridge Water Project's program in Western Kenya. What follows is direct from them:

BACKGROUND

The proposed Ipali Health Centre started in the year 1986 through efforts of Ipali community members who used to go long distance looking for health services. In the year 1989 the Development Committee of Ipali Health Centre made an appeal to Kenya Finland Primary Health Programme (KENAFYA) who managed to construct permanent buildings to the facility which enable the health workers to start offering maternity services and admitting both out and in patients depending on patients health conditions.

Kenya Finland Primary Health Programme after constructing the facility also managed to install a 10M steel Tower and 10,000 pressed steel tanks since them to date the reserve tank hasn’t store in water for facility’s domestic use as there is no access to clean water source.

The Ipali health Centre offers free maternity service to women of Itumbu, Ebusikhale, Esaba, Ebusiekwe, Esibakala , Embali, Emukola Ebusivalo, Emumbwi, Esiandumba , Ebutanyi and Eb usakame with a total population of 14,832 people all being the sub-locations served by  the said health  centre. Whenever a woman has delivered water is either brought by a family member or the health centre has to hire women from within at the cost of Ksh. 20 per 20 litres jerrican.

The Ipali Health Centre committee made an appeal to Bridge Water Project requesting for a borehole to be drilled as a matter of intervention in their lack of water problem in the facility.

CURRENT WATER SOURCE

Currently the facility get water from TIANG’A and Ipali protected springs located one and half to 2KM away from the health centre, during long dry spell water level goes down so one has to take long like 3-4 minutes to fill 20 liters jerrican whereas during and after harvesting its very rare to get one to hire since people have plenty of food in their granaries (store) and can’t be hired on casual labor.

The facility records also indicates that most patients suffer water born diseases i.e. Diarrheal, Amoebasis, Shigella Dysentery as a result of using water from the mentioned springs records a turbidity value of 80 and 60  below the (WHO) parameters.

POPULATION

The facility at most offers its services to 800 – 1000 patients per month both in patient and out patients whereas it has residence staff clinical officer – 1, nurses 6, lab technician 1, Community Health Extension officer 1, peer educators 3, community Health Workers (CHW) 9, 2 volunteers in charge of Health Records estimated population of 1,017 people. (Editor's Note: While this many people may have access on any given day, realistically a single water source can only support a population of 350-500 people.  This community would be a good candidate for a second project in the future so adequate water is available. To learn more, click here.)

HYGIENE & SANITATION

The facility has several permanent buildings which are washed daily, pit latrines toilets for patients 5, for staff 2, 4 more new ones for the patients donated by Emuhaya Constituency Development Fund (CDF) (11 pit latrines) which are washed in daily basis, bathroom with modern showers available. The facility has a kitchen where food for both in patient and staff are cooked. It’s clean and well ventilated. Hand washing sinks already fixed despite no single drop of water has gone through. There’s compost pit and placenta pit for waste disposal e.t.c.

ACCESSING THE NEED

There’s need to drilled a borehole for the proposed Ipali Health Centre that is aimed at improving Hygiene and sanitation of the facility and also improve Mother Child Health Care Service.

PROJECT BENEFICIARIES

If the well is drilled Ipali Health Centre staff and patients will be the beneficiaries.

WATER COMMITTEE

The Ipali Health Centre Management Committee is organized ready to take full responsibility of operating maintenance and management of the water supply, if drilled for the facility.

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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!