July, 2020: COVID-19 Prevention Training Update at Ivumbu 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 Ivumbu, 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.

May, 2019: Ivumbu Community Sand Dam Complete

Ivumbu Community, Kenya now has a new source of water thanks to your donation. A new dam was constructed on the riverbed, which will build up sand to raise the water table and naturally filter water. As soon as it rains, the dam will begin to build up sand and store water. With this water, the surrounding landscape will become lush and fertile.

It could take up to three years of rain (because sometimes it only rains once a year!) for this sand dam to reach maximum capacity. Sand dam construction was undertaken simultaneously with the construction of a hand-dug well that will give community members a safe method of drawing water. As the sand dam matures and stores more sand, a huge supply of water will be available for drinking from the adjacent hand-dug well. To see that hand-dug well, click here.

"The water project is very beneficial to all community members," said Sila Kathungu, a farmer who lives in Ivumbu.

"We began using the water point as soon as it was completed. The distance covered to access water has reduced and the water from the shallow well is fresh and clean."

Sand Dam Construction Process

The community members collected all of the local materials like rocks and sand that were required for successful completion of the dam. They also provided unskilled labor to support our artisans. The collection of raw construction materials takes longer than the actual construction. For a super large sand dam, materials collection could take up to four months.

Siting and technical designs were drawn and presented to the Water Resources Management Authority and a survey sent to the National Environment Management Authority for approval before construction started. Once approved, we established a firm bedrock at the base of the sand dam wall. In the absence of good bedrock, excavation is done up to a depth at which the technical team is satisfied that the ground is firm enough to stop seepage.

Then mortar (a mixture of sand, cement, and water) is mixed and heaped into the foundation. Rocks are heaped into the mortar once there is enough to hold. Barbed wire and twisted bar are used to reinforce the mixture. Once the foundation is complete, a skeleton of timber is built to hold the sludge and rocks up above ground level. The process is then repeated until a sufficient height, width and length are built up. The vertical timber beams are dismantled and the dam is left to cure.

The final dam is 37 meters long and 4.9 meters high and took 820 bags of cement to build.

New Knowledge

The training was planned by the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Officer, Veronica Matolo, and the area field officer, Rhoda Mwangu. The field officer was notified on the scheduled dates which the training would occur and later informed the community members through the group chairman.

The training went along as expected because the community members turned up in large numbers. Some 39 people attended the three days of sanitation and hygiene training.

Attendees at the third day of training

The weather was favorable for training. We converged at a community member's homestead which was centrally positioned and easily accessed by all the attendees. The household had a friendly environment, with many trees providing good umbrella shade for people.

Trainer Matolo conferred with the field staff about their visits to households and interviews with community members to determine which topics on which still needed improvement. They decided to train on:

• Health problems in the community
• Investigating community practices
• Good and bad hygiene behaviors
• How diseases spread and preventing the spread of diseases
• Choosing sanitation improvements
• Choosing improved hygiene behaviors
• Planning for behavioral change
• Handwashing
• Soapmaking

The community members were very active and attentive throughout the training. There were many questions asked which expressed their interest in the topics of discussion. Men were more involved and participative from the beginning to the end of the training. In addition, they volunteered for demonstrative exercises which made the sessions livelier and more enjoyable.

The facilitator had an in-depth discussion about the Seasonal Calendar. This is a participatory tool primarily used to explore seasonal changes in a community in relation to diseases. These charts show the trends of diseases; when they come, their causes, and their prevention mechanisms. The community highlighted their major activities often related to the contraction of diseases such as water sourcing and the probable diseases that can be contracted at different periods in a year.

Soapmaking

The community members learned the causes and prevention of diseases that are contracted in their area. This was an eye-opening topic which gave most members a new perspective and view of their lifestyles. Members were excited because they were enlightened and impacted with new knowledge.

Community members were taught on tippy tap construction and handwashing. They also learned about the importance of using latrines in a bid to eradicate the habit of open defecation. They heard about tips such as improvising lids to cover the latrine pit hole and the importance of washing the latrines as often as possible.

Tippy tap and handwashing station

"The training was so intense and educative. We plan to change our lifestyle eating habits in a bid to reduce the lifestyle diseases that are normally acquired in this area. Adopting new practices will help in administering improved hygiene and sanitation in our community because our neighbors will also copy them," Mr. Kathungu said.

Thank You for making all of this possible!

March, 2019: Ivumbu Community Sand Dam Underway

A severe clean water shortage in Ivumbu Community drains people’s time, energy, and health. They have to walk a long time just to find dirty water. Thanks to your generosity, we’re working to bring clean water nearby and much more.

Get to know this community through the introduction and pictures we’ve posted, and read about this water, sanitation and hygiene project. We look forward to reaching out with news of success!