Borehole Well and Hand Pump
Rehabilitation Project
The 726 students and teachers at Mting'ongo Primary School depend on a well installed by an organization in 1989 as their primary source of water. But after years of neglect, the well has become increasingly unreliable, leaving the school in a constant state of uncertainty.
The well that needs attention.
Each breakdown creates a crisis. With no dedicated funding or technical support to maintain the well, or the expertise to fix it when it breaks down, everyone at the school suffers. At least five times, valuable resources that should have been funneled to ensure students receive a quality education have been diverted to restore water.
Forty-year-old teacher Jenifer Mulunda described some of the hardships of not having reliable water available at the school.
Teacher Jenifer Mulunda.
"Water is very important because it supports all daily activities in the school. It is needed for drinking, sanitation, cleaning, and maintaining a healthy environment where learners can study well. Without reliable water, it becomes difficult for the school to function effectively," she said.
"When the school borehole was not available, we had to rely on a distant protected spring. This led to a loss of learning time, as staff and sometimes learners spent part of the day fetching water. It also affected sanitation and hygiene because the available water was not always enough for all [the] school's needs," she continued.
Ms. Mulunda shared that when the well is out of service and their rain tank is empty, students are forced to leave the school to fetch water from a community spring. It requires them to abandon their learning in the middle of the school day, because they need water for drinking and hygiene at school. It is not ideal, but they have no choice. It puts both their physical and academic well-being at risk.
Students visit the faraway spring.
"I feel frustrated and concerned when the water supply is not working properly because it disrupts the normal running of the school. It is especially worrying when learners have to walk long distances to fetch water from the protected spring instead of being in class," she continued.
Not only are students absent from class, but hygiene at the school is also declining, putting everyone's health at greater risk. It is urgent to find a solution to their water crisis and make sure students can return to class, healthy and happy, ready to learn.
"Our goal is to improve learners' academic performance and provide a safe, healthy learning environment. Reliable water will help us achieve this by reducing interruptions caused by water shortages, improving hygiene and sanitation, and giving teachers more time to conduct remedial classes and other academic support activities," Ms. Mulunda concluded.
We plan to adopt the school's well so we can ensure reliable, safe water is always nearby and readily accessible. This will enable students and teachers to return to the classroom, enjoy better health, and look to the future.
Steps Toward a Solution
Our technical experts worked with the local community to identify the most effective solution to their water crisis. Together, they agreed to adopt a well previously drilled by another organization that is no longer actively maintained.
Adopted Well: Ensuring Lasting Reliability
This adoption program protects and strengthens access to clean water by identifying boreholes installed by other organizations and adopting them into The Water Project’s proven monitoring and maintenance systems. This cost-effective approach reduces downtime, prevents waterborne illness, safeguards health and livelihoods, and advances long-term regional water coverage.
Before use, the well will be thoroughly vetted and repaired to meet our established standards. From there, we keep the system safe and dependable through quarterly monitoring and prompt attention to any maintenance needs — minimizing the risk of unexpected breakdowns. Water quality testing is conducted twice a year to ensure the supply remains healthy for the entire community. All of these services are covered by an affordable annual fee, with no additional costs at the time of repairs.
Community Education
Hygiene and sanitation training are integral to our water projects. Training is tailored to each community's specific needs and includes key topics such as proper water handling, improved hygiene practices, disease transmission prevention, and care of the new water point. Safe water and improved hygiene habits foster a healthier future for everyone in the community. Encouraged and supported by the guidance of our team, a water user committee representative of the community's diverse members assumes responsibility for maintaining the water point, often gathering fees to ensure its upkeep.
