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 School
Founded in 1957, Muthei Secondary School currently serves 100 students, 56 of whom are boys and 44 are girls. It also employs eight teachers and three support staff. Many members of the Kisaila Self-Help Group send their children to this school and are all too aware of the water situation here. That is why the group’s first project request, upon joining ASDF, was for a water tank at the school.
Water Situation
The school has two plastic water tanks, one with a capacity of 10,000 liters and the other is 2,500 liters. These fill up with rainwater during the rainy season, with the rain being dispersed between tanks and a tap by the kitchen. Students and staff can rely on this for a while, but not for too long. The 12,500 liters of water is barely enough to last the school for a whole term, since their daily water need is 450 liters. These tanks normally get used up within two months, plunging the school into an acute water shortage until rains return.
When this happens, the pupils bear the burden of providing water for their school day. They are required to fetch their own water and carry at least five liters every day. For the teachers’ cooking and drinking, the school buys water from some parents, who fetch and transport the water at 20 shillings per container. In turn, the school keeps upping the students' fees to acquire enough water.
The children fetch their water from any source they can find on the way, whether it be a river, well, or puddle. The inability for quality control opens a window for contaminated water, and waterborne disease is thus a common issue at the school. These diseases force many students to stay home from school. Or if they make it to class, they suffer extreme discomfort. Some students even have to lie down on the ground throughout the day.
Deputy Headteacher Peter Kavutu says that "many students miss school when it is declared compulsory for the children to bring water to school. But we use this measure since it's not possible for the school to run without water!"
Sanitation Situation
There are six pit latrines, but they are in poor condition. This coupled with a water shortage makes for filthy, smelly latrines. The resulting low sanitation standards are especially dangerous to the children who don't have shoes.
There are no hand-washing stations on school grounds, because there wouldn't be enough water to fill them. The school has dug a garbage pit out back, where frequent bonfires keep the pile low.
Plans: Hygiene and Sanitation Training
Students and staff will be trained for one day. Those in attendance will form a school health club that will promote good hygiene and sanitation practices both at school and home. They will learn all of the steps to proper hand-washing, how to treat water, and how to keep their environment clean. The school will also be taught how to best oversee and maintain their new rainwater catchment tank and hand-washing stations.
Plans: Hand-Washing Stations
Three hand-washing stations will be delivered at the project’s completion. These are 250-liter plastic tanks fitted with taps. The health club and school management will be responsible for making sure tanks are filled with water and that a cleaning agent such as soap or ash is available.
Plans: Rainwater Catchment Tank
We will build a 103,000-liter rainwater catchment tank for this school. This water will benefit the students, teachers, and supplementary staff. Parents will mobilize the materials needed for construction, such as sand and stone. They will also lend some strong arms to help with the actual construction.
The huge capacity of this tank makes the others look tiny in comparison; 103,000 liters should collect enough water to carry students through the entire dry season. As soon as the tank has time to cure, it can begin to collect rainwater for drinking, cooking and cleaning!