Project Status



Project Type:  Borehole Well and Hand Pump

Program: The Water Promise - Kenya

Impact: 450 Served

Project Phase:  In Service - Mar 2015

Functionality Status:  Functional

Last Checkup: 08/28/2024

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 Mayungu Church of God started in the year 1958 with aim of ministering the word of God to the members of Mayungu Community and neighboring communities. Currently the Mayungu church is a Regional Centre which gathers 21 churches which submit under its Administration under Ingotse Mission.

The Mayungu Church of God has a mission of eradicating illiteracy in the area where it serves and to achieve its goal it is mainly targeting young children of Mayungu community, both its members and non-church members, especially who have attained school going age 4-6 years. The programme will also target adults who will be involved in the Bible and Literacy Leaque where church members will be camping at Mayungu Church of God Compound during Bible study sessions.

Many times the church management tried to implement this programme but lack of quality water supply to sustain the programme has remained a challenge. The church management therefore learned of Bridge Water Project Development Activities in the water sector and made an appeal requesting BWP to drill a borehole to access quality water and be able to implement its desired projects to the glory of God.

CURRENT WATER SOURCE

Mayungu Church of God currently fetch water from Mutenyo stream located 700 metres away from the church compound. The stream is seasonal and dries up. During rain season it is filled up by floods hence causing contamination. As a result, water users from the community around suffer from waterborne diseases like Typhoid, Amoeba, Cholera, and Diarrohea.

Whenever the church has a function, women have stay longer in the stream since the recharge is very low and at times women rebel to their church leaders when they are asked to fetch water for use during seminars other church functions.

POPULATION

The church total population is 225 members; 150 adults and 75 Sunday school children while the community has 35 households with an average of 6-8 people per house; approximately 450 people.

HYGIENE & SANITATION

There’s a big permanent church building that is washed ones per month; a semi-permanent building (Early Childhood Development Centre) classrooms (ECD) which is smeared occasionally with cow dung applied on the floor; 1 pit latrine block with 4 doors, 2 for male and 2 for female which is washed every Sunday and daily during school days since pupils use the same with their E.C.D teachers. There are no hand washing stations nor composite pit.

ASSESSING THE NEED

There’s need to drill a borehole for the proposed Mayungu Church of God and Community to enable them access quality water for their domestic use, which is aimed at improving Sanitation and Hygiene status. Also, with a reliable water supply the church will have time to serve its members effectively as it should. The well will also bring about the behavior change.

PROJECT BENEFICIARIES

If the well is drilled, members of Mayungu Church of God, Early Childhood Development Centre pupils and the member of Mayungu Community will be the beneficiaries.

WATER COMMITTEE

The water committee is already formed and is comprised of both church management and community village elders.

RISKS

- Poor road network
- Bad weather conditions
- Poor political stability
- Culture barrier

Project Updates


July, 2020: COVID-19 Prevention Training Update at Mayungu Church of God

Our teams are working on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic. Join us in our fight against the virus while maintaining access to clean, reliable water.

We are carrying out awareness and prevention trainings on the virus in every community we serve. Very often, our teams are the first (and only) to bring news and information of the virus to rural communities like Mayungu, Kenya.

We trained community members on the symptoms, transmission routes, and prevention of COVID-19. Due to public gathering concerns, we worked with trusted community leaders to gather a select group of community members who would then relay the information learned to the rest of their family and friends.

We covered essential hygiene lessons:

- Demonstrations on how to build a simple handwashing station

- Proper handwashing technique

- The importance of using soap and clean water for handwashing

- Cleaning and disinfecting commonly touched surfaces including at the water point.

We covered COVID-19-specific guidance in line with national and international standards:

- Information on the symptoms and transmission routes of COVID-19

- What social distancing is and how to practice it

- How to cough into an elbow

- Alternative ways to greet people without handshakes, fist bumps, etc.

- How to make and properly wear a facemask.

During training, we installed a new handwashing station with soap near the community’s water point, along with a sign with reminders of what we covered.

Due to the rampant spread of misinformation about COVID-19, we also dedicated time to a question and answer session to help debunk rumors about the disease and provide extra information where needed.

We continue to stay in touch with this community as the pandemic progresses. We want to ensure their water point remains functional and their community stays informed about the virus.

Water access, sanitation, and hygiene are at the crux of disease prevention. You can directly support our work on the frontlines of COVID-19 prevention in all of the communities we serve while maintaining their access to safe, clean, and reliable water.




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!