Project Status



Project Type:  Dug Well and Hand Pump

Regional Program: Southeastern Kenya WaSH Program

Impact: 345 Served

Project Phase:  In Service - Nov 2016

Functionality Status:  Functional

Last Checkup: 11/27/2024

Project Features


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Community Profile

This project is a part of our shared program with Africa Sand Dam Foundation. Our team is pleased to directly share the below report (edited for clarity, as needed).

Welcome to the Community

The Kyangundi Water Project Self-Help Group, as the name suggests, was formed with the sole purpose of addressing water insecurity in the area. Group members are from Kalawa Village, which is home to 345 people from 55 different households.

The self-help group has been able to work with the Constituency Development Fund (CDF), an institution that was formed in bid by the government to devolve broader services to a more local level. The first project undertaken by the group was a hand-dug well built beside a spring. The community has great self-motivation to seek partners like CDF. They are resolved and resilient, taking water scarcity head-on.

The community is located amidst hilly terrain and water supply is a huge challenge. After their first hand-dug well, the group wasn't able to continue because of financial constraints. Thus, the group sought ASDF's support to unite with them in tackling water shortage in their region. The group has already worked with ASDF for two years and has been able to complete two sand dams. To access clean drinking water, the community has asked for this project to be a hand-dug well adjacent to one of the sand dams.

Current Water Situation

For now, the community digs scoop holes next to their sand dams. Though these holes are full of good water, they are completely open to contamination from outside sources, such as dirty rainwater and animals. A mother or child will tote a 20-liter jerrycan to the scoop hole, and literally scoop the water up with their container! When we visited, we saw this process firsthand. Some of the water-fetching containers appear to be dirty, and most likely further contaminate the scoop hole's water. Once the water is brought back home, it is poured into a larger reservoir of 100-200 liters.

Fetching water from the scoop holes is time-consuming. On many occasions, a new scoop hole must be dug to access fresh water. On others, fetching water can be dangerous for young children at risk of falling in the large hole. Looking at the pictures, you'll also notice that water isn't only fetched from scoop holes, but directly from the dam itself as water drips and trickles over the ledge.

Current Sanitation Situation

All of the self-help group's households have pit latrines walled with concrete and roofed with iron sheets. These are cleaned regularly. All latrines have hand-washing stations outside, too! Almost all homes have dish racks and clotheslines. Families throw their garbage in compost pits that benefit their farms. Maybe these good conditions cause curiosity? Since the self-help group is on their third year of a five year program with ASDF, so they have been trained on healthy sanitation and hygiene habits already!

Plans: Hygiene and Sanitation Training Review

Since the community has already attended extensive training on hygiene and sanitation, we will offer one day of review. A lot of content will focus around the new well being constructed next to the sand dam: how to use, manage, and maintain the pump.

Plans: New Well

Construction is expected to take two months start to finish. It will be lined with concrete and fitted with an Afridev pump. Its location next to the sand dam will ensure that there is always a good supply of water accessible from the pump. This is because a mature sand dam not only naturally filters water, but raises the water table.

Project Updates


July, 2020: COVID-19 Prevention Training Update at Kyangundi Community

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 Kyangundi, 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,

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.

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.




December, 2017: A Year Later: Kyangundi Hand-Dug Well

A year ago, generous donors helped build a hand-dug well for the Kyangundi Self-Help Group in Kenya. Because of these gifts and our monthly donors, partners are able to visit project sites throughout the year, strengthening relationships with communities and evaluating the actual water project. These consistent visits allow us to learn vital lessons and hear amazing stories – we’re excited to share this one from our partner Mutheu Mutune with you.




Project Photos


Project Type

Hand-dug wells have been an important source of water throughout human history! Now, we have so many different types of water sources, but hand-dug wells still have their place. Hand dug wells are not as deep as borehole wells, and work best in areas where there is a ready supply of water just under the surface of the ground, such as next to a mature sand dam. Our artisans dig down through the layers of the ground and then line the hole with bricks, stone, or concrete, which prevent contamination and collapse. Then, back up at surface level, we install a well platform and a hand pump so people can draw up the water easily.


A Year Later: Kyangundi Hand-Dug Well

December, 2017

This water has helped me construct my three bedroom house and now my home looks beautiful. I have also established a small garden with my favorite type of flowers.

Keeping The Water Promise

There's an incredible community of monthly donors who have come alongside you in supporting clean water in Kyangundi Community.

This giving community supports ongoing sustainability programs that help Kyangundi Community maintain access to safe, reliable water. Together, they keep The Water Promise.

We’re confident you'll love joining this world-changing group committed to sustainability!

A year ago, generous donors helped build a hand-dug well for the Kyangundi Self-Help Group in Kenya. Because of these gifts and our monthly donors, partners are able to visit project sites throughout the year, strengthening relationships with communities and evaluating the actual water project. These consistent visits allow us to learn vital lessons and hear amazing stories – we’re excited to share this one from our partner Mutheu Mutune with you.


Life for these members has changed in many ways. They are now practicing vegetable farming and tree planting. They sell water from the well and currently have 420 shillings saved in their bank account. The citrus trees they had planted in their nurseries are now ready to sell, and the money from the tree seedlings will be used for group development. Before this project, clean water for drinking was scarce; the members could only dig holes in the sandy riverbeds in hopes of finding any water at all.

Thus, this well has been of great benefit to both the self-help group members and the non-members who use the water. They also had attended a training on sanitation and hygiene which has impacted their lives positively, and water-related diseases have not been reported.

Josephine Kyalo and Mbatha Maingi at their clean water source.

We met the group's vice secretary, Josephine Kyalo at the well. She and her family have used the water for making bricks. "This water has helped me construct my three bedroom house and now my home looks beautiful. I have also established a small garden with my favorite type of flowers. We never used to treat our drinking water, but since the project we have constantly been treating the water and storing it in a safe place. This has resulted in fewer cases of typhoid and amoeba. We sell water from the well and use the money for maintenance expenses. Our children have improved their school performance because they use time initially wasted going to fetch water on reading and doing their homework instead. The water has boosted tree planting since the survival rate has increased compared to before as you can see our tree nursery is doing well and we have transplanted them to our farms!" she explained excitedly.

Two boys showed up to fetch water during our interview.

15-year-old Mbatha Maingi was also at the well. She told us, "My personal hygiene has improved because water is available. This has happened to nearly all the students in the area, and they are now comfortable. Before, some would fail to attend classes as well as church. They are now comfortable and their performance has improved. We grow vegetables and fruits at our farms which have improved our nutrition. Before this project, we used to waste a lot of time walking for long distances, and at times we’d be forced to go home late due to long lines. Distance has decreased and time taken is less than 30 minutes."


The Water Project and our partners are committed to consistent monitoring of each water source. Our monitoring and evaluation program, made possible by monthly donors, allows us to visit communities up to four times a year. Read more about our program and how you can help.


Navigating through intense dry spells, performing preventative maintenance, conducting quality repairs when needed and continuing to assist community leaders to manage water points are all normal parts of keeping projects sustainable. The Water Promise community supports ongoing sustainability programs that help Kyangundi Community maintain access to safe, reliable water.

We’d love for you to join this world-changing group committed to sustainability.

The most impactful way to continue your support of Kyangundi Community – and hundreds of other places just like this – is by joining our community of monthly givers.

Your monthly giving will help provide clean water, every month... keeping The Water Promise.


Contributors

The Leosz Family
South Congregational Church
Tolken Family
Nells Coffee
48 individual donor(s)