December, 2018: A Year Later: Lukala Primary School

A year ago, your generous donation enabled us to construct a rainwater tank for Lukala Primary School in Kenya. The contributions of incredible monthly donors and others giving directly to The Water Promise allow our local teams to visit project sites throughout the year, strengthening relationships with communities and evaluating the water project over time. These consistent visits allow us to learn vital lessons and hear amazing stories. Read more...

January, 2018: Lukala Primary School Project Complete

Lukala Primary School in Kenya now has a new source of safe, clean water thanks to your generous donation. A new rainwater catchment system has been built, and there are now six new latrines being used. Two hand-washing stations have been installed, and students have received training in sanitation and hygiene. Just imagine the difference these resources will make in the lives of these young students!

You made it happen, now help keep the water flowing! Join our team of monthly donors and help us maintain this rainwater catchment tank and many other projects.

The report below from our partner gives the latest details of the project. We also just updated the project page with new pictures.

Project Result: New Knowledge

We informed the headteacher of the need for hygiene and sanitation training during our first visit. From there, the headteacher could recruit teachers and student leaders to attend. Since all of the classrooms were in use, the headteacher planned for desks to be moved outside for the training.

The students gathered outside under the shade of a tree for hygiene and sanitation training.

The students were eager to learn and promised to share new practices like hand-washing with their peers. Each participant is now a member of the newly formed CTC (child to child) club on campus, which is responsible for recruiting new members to be advocates of good hygiene and sanitation. Each member has promised to be a good role model as they demonstrate the new things they've learned on a daily basis.

We taught that hygiene entails personal hygiene, water hygiene, and environmental hygiene. Attention needs to be given to each facet of hygiene to enjoy a healthy life.

An entire lesson was on management and maintenance of the new tank and latrine facilities. Regular checking and cleaning of the gutter system is a must! It’s also important to treat the water while it is still in the tank. We also covered topics including but not limited to:

– Water pollution and water treatment

– Cleaning self and clean environment

– Group dynamics, leadership, and governance

– Forming an effective CTC (child to child) club

– Hand-washing

Demonstrations were used for hand-washing, tooth-brushing, solar disinfection, and many other topics. We facilitated group discussions and presentations, and students took part in role-plays. The students also received handouts which will help them teach hygiene and sanitation to their peers.

The CTC club will include both students and teachers who want to take responsibility for spreading the message of good health and hygiene among their peers. They will also be responsible for managing hand-washing stations, cleaning latrines, and keeping the school environment tidy. A water user committee has also been formed by parents and school administration, which will be responsible for overseeing and maintaining the new facilities. And since the tank was finished by the time we held training, we could take everyone to see exactly what we were talking about when it comes to caring for their new water source.

Students learning how to fetch their clean water in a responsible, efficient way.

Headteacher Najoli said, "Thank you for imparting greater knowledge to us. We have learned useful information which indeed is important to us as a school. We will disseminate this information to the rest of our members who didn't have the opportunity to attend."

Project Result: VIP Latrines

This project funded the installation of six new VIP (ventilated improved pit) latrines. All of these latrines are easy to use and clean. And with a rainwater catchment tank, there should be enough water to keep them clean all the time!

The boys learning about their new latrines and how to clean them thoroughly.

Project Result: Hand-Washing Stations

The two hand-washing stations were delivered to school and handed over to the CTC club. These have been placed outside of boys’ and girls’ latrines to encourage hand-washing after latrine use. CTC club members will teach other students how to properly wash their hands at these stations, and will make sure there is always soap or ash available. Now the school has the stations they need, and they have the water to fill them.

Students gathered around to see how their teacher washes his hands.

Project Result: Rainwater Catchment Tank

Construction for this 50,000-liter rainwater catchment tank was successful!

The process officially began with our staff and school administration moving around the school compound to try and determine the best location for a new rainwater catchment tank. This needed to be the best site with good, clean roofing to catch the rainwater.

Parents, staff, and students helped our artisans gather everything needed for construction. All the while, women cooked meals for the artisans, and the school provided accommodations for the artisans during their work. Some local men and women even helped our artisans with their manual labor.

Collecting the supplementary construction materials needed presented the only challenge; we needed water to mix concrete, but the volunteers couldn't keep up with the demand. The headteacher ended up volunteering his car to go back and forth to the river to get enough water.

Rainwater tank construction began with clearance of the site: excavating the soil within the required measurements to make level ground for the tank foundation. The foundation was cast by laying hardcore on a level ground and then reinforcing it using steel, concrete and waterproof cement.

As the foundation was being lain, both the drawing pipe as well as the washout pipe were affixed. The wall was built with ferro-cement techniques through six layers. The inner wall was plastered while rough casting was done on the outer part. The catchment area was dug, plastered, and a staircase installed.

The pillar in the center supports the dome.

After the superstructure had been given enough time to settle, the dome construction followed. The manhole cover was fitted, inlet pipes were connected to the roof gutters, inlet screens, ventilation pipes (breathers) and overflow pipes were all done to standards.

Drainage was set up, and then the tank was given three to four weeks to undergo complete curing before it was cleaned and handed over to Lukala Primary School. It already has some water in it!

Mrs. Ebby Atsiaya is a parent of a student attending Lukala. She was so happy about the presence of clean water there. She said, "This school has had a major issue to do with water and sanitation facilities. Our pupils have been wasting much time fetching water from far distances, and this has had a huge impact on their studies. With the implementation of this project, our pupils will have a conducive environment for their studies and I believe their performance will improve."

November, 2017: Short Delay at Lukala Primary School

We've received an update from the field letting us know that there's a few months' delay at Lukala Primary School. Staff couldn't start their work because of a short school vacation. Tank and latrine construction started just this month, after which the trainer will hold management and maintenance sessions with students, staff, and parents.

The completion date has been moved back by a month to allow time for collection information and pictures from the project. Thank You for standing with us as we bring clean water to Lukala Primary School!

August, 2017: Lukala Primary School Project Underway

Lukala Primary School will soon have an adequate source of water thanks to your generous donation! A rainwater catchment tank and new latrines are being constructed, hand-washing stations provided, and the school is being trained on proper sanitation and hygiene practices. Imagine the impact this will have on these students! Thank you for noticing the need here, and we’ll keep you posted as the work continues. But for now, check out the pictures, information, and maps of this school that we've added to this project page.

Thank You for partnering with us to unlock these students’ potential.