Project Status



Project Type:  Rainwater Catchment

Regional Program: Western Kenya WaSH Program

Impact: 271 Served

Project Phase:  In Service - Jan 2018

Functionality Status:  Low/No Water or Mechanical Breakdown

Last Checkup: 04/09/2024

Project Features


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Community Profile

This project is a part of our shared program with Western Water And Sanitation Forum (WEWASAFO). Our team is pleased to directly share the below report (edited for clarity, as needed).

Welcome to the School

Malinya Girls Secondary School was started in 2011 by the District Education Board with the goal of educated the girl child to prevent early marriage. It now has a total enrollment of 250 girls and employs 14 teachers and seven support staff.

Malinya Girls Secondary School accommodates both boarders and day scholars. Boarders wake up at 4:30am and gather together for morning preps until 6am, when they take breakfast and start cleaning. Day scholars arrive at school at 6:30am and join the boarders in routine cleaning.

Normal lessons run between 8am and 4pm, with two breaks and lunch between. Students go for games between 4 and 5pm. Day scholars then leave for home as boarders serve supper and go back to personalized evening studies.

After seeing a successful water project at Iguyio Primary School, one of the teachers named Mr. Collins, proposed Malinya Girls since his sister is a student there.

Water Situation

The school lacks a proper water source and storage. The school currently has a 5,000-liter plastic tank that in most cases when it rains, the water is quickly used up.

When the school runs out of this water, students are forced to go collect water from a stream that's about one kilometer away. A lot of time which could have been spent improving academic performance is wasted with numerous trips to the stream. In most cases, the girls are accompanied by the teacher on the duty so as to prevent the girls from talking to strangers who mean them harm.

After drinking this water, the girls often suffer from typhoid.

Teacher Jentrix said, "My girls are really suffering in terms of getting clean and safe water for consumption. It has been like a thorn in the flesh seeing how they struggle to get insufficient water. Every mother wishes the best for her children, and it has been my plea that we get enough supply of clean water in the school!"

Sanitation Situation

The initial visit to the school established that sanitation levels need to be addressed. There are only 12 doors of latrines for girls, which are not in good condition - there is not enough water to keep them clean. There are two other doors for teachers and visitors.

The school has one improvised hand-washing facility at the teacher’s toilets. The student section lacks a hand-washing facility.

Plans: Hygiene and Sanitation Training and Hand-Washing Stations

Training will be held for three days. The facilitator will use PHAST (participatory hygiene and sanitation transformation), ABCD (asset-based community development), CTC (child to child), lectures, group discussions, and handouts to teach health topics and ways to promote good practices within the school. The CTC method will prepare students to lead other students into healthy habits, as well as kickstart a CTC club for the school. This CTC club will oversee the new facilities, such as hand-washing stations, and make sure they are kept clean and in working condition. The two hand-washing stations will be delivered to the school, and the club will fill them with water on a daily basis and make sure there is always a cleaning agent such as soap or ash.

Plans: VIP Latrines

Two triple-door latrines will be constructed with local materials that the school will help gather. And with a new source of water on school grounds, students and staff should have enough to keep these new latrines clean.

Plans: Rainwater Catchment Tank

A 50,000-liter rainwater catchment tank will help alleviate the water crisis at this school. The school will also help gather the needed materials such as sand, rocks, and water from the spring for mixing cement. Once finished, this tank can begin catching rainfall that will be used by the school’s students and staff. Students will no longer have to leave school to find water throughout the day.

We and the school strongly believe that with this assistance, standards will significantly improve. These higher standards will translate to better academic performance!

Project Updates


December, 2018: A Year Later: Malinya Girls Secondary School

A year ago, your generous donation enabled us to construct a rainwater tank for Malinya Girls Secondary 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: Malinya Girls Secondary School Project Complete

Malinya Girls Secondary 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 ladies!

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

Hygiene and sanitation training was held with students and teachers in a school classroom. The students were respectful listeners, but were also bold enough to ask lots of questions to better understand these new topics.

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.

We taught an entire lesson 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.

The teachers worked with the students to create a roster of responsibilities like filling the hand-washing stations, cleaning, and recruiting new CTC members.

Principal Rita Mmeli said, "Malinya Girls Secondary School is one of the schools in Kakamega County that has really suffered in terms of lacking a sufficient supply of clean and safe water. At the moment we are seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. It is because of the ongoing project and above all, the acquisition of very crucial and important information from the CTC training. The facilitators did a good job and the entire school fraternity are proud..."

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!

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 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.

Project Result: Rainwater Catchment Tank

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

Finally, the catchment area was dug, plastered, and a staircase installed. Drainage was set up there, and then the tank was allowed three to four weeks to undergo complete curing before it was cleaned and handed over to Malinya Girls Secondary School. It already has some water in it!

Teacher Katunyi Amilliah said, "With your great support, Malinya Girls is no longer a laughing stalk but is an attractive center for development of better brains in future. The new clean and safe water will not only improve the performance of the school but also will definitely increase the population." With enough clean water for drinking, cleaning, and cooking, girls will no longer have to leave school throughout the day. The principal is optimistic that with a stronger focus on studies, these girls will have a chance to perform much better on the national exams to get into university.




November, 2017: Malinya Girls Secondary School Project Underway

Malinya Girls Secondary School in Kenya has begun building a new source of safe, clean water because of 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.




Project Photos


Project Type

For a rainwater collection system, we build gutters around a building with good, clean roofing to channel rain where we want it. From there, the water falls through a filtered inlet pipe into a high-capacity storage tank, the size of which is based on population and average rainfall patterns. In the tank, water can be stored for months, where it is easily treated and accessed. Learn more here!


A Year Later: Malinya Girls Secondary School

December, 2018

Teachers anticipate the students will perform better on this year’s national exams now that they spend more time studying thanks to clean water on school grounds.

Keeping The Water Promise

There's an incredible community of monthly donors who have come alongside you in supporting clean water in Malinya Girls Secondary School.

This giving community supports ongoing sustainability programs that help Malinya Girls Secondary School 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, your generous donation enabled us to construct a rainwater tank for Malinya Girls Secondary 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 – and we’re excited to share this one from local team member Jacklyne Chelegat with you.

This water project has turned things around for the better.

Students are able to settle into class and learn without interruptions caused by leaving school grounds to fetch water. The school's average test scores are expected to increase, as teachers report that student performance in class has improved over the past year.

"We are privileged to access clean and safe water for consumption. It has improved the health of the students and this has curbed absenteeism among pupils," said school Principal Rita Meli.

Rita Meli and Field Officer Jacklyne Chelagat

The school's sanitation and hygiene standards have also improved significantly. Cases of girls missing class because of water-related diseases after consuming dirty water from the spring are now the past. Malinya Girls has increased its enrollment, as it has become a more attractive learning center due to the tank and latrines constructed a year ago.

Construction of the tank is only one step along the journey toward sustainable access to clean water. The Water Project is committed to consistent monitoring of each water source. Our monitoring and evaluation program, made possible by donors like you, allows us to maintain our relationships with communities by visiting up to 4 times each year to ensure that the water points are safe and reliable.

This is just one of the many ways that we monitor projects and communicate with you. Additionally, you can always check the functionality status and our project map to see how all of our water points are performing, based on our consistent monitoring data.

One project is just a drop in the bucket towards ending the global water crisis, but the ripple effects of this project are truly astounding. This project at Malinya Girls Secondary School is changing many lives.

"I am able to fully concentrate on my studies and undertake proper ways of sanitation and hygiene thanks to this project. The presence of the handwashing station has helped us have clean and safe hands all the time!" said 17-year-old student Fidelia Ajwang.

Fidelia Ajwang

This is only possible because of the web of support and trust built between The Water Project, our local teams, the community, and you. We are excited to stay in touch with this community and support their journey with safe water.

Read more about The Water Promise 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 Malinya Girls Secondary School 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 Malinya Girls Secondary School – 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.