July, 2020: COVID-19 Prevention Training Update at Ilala Community, Arnold Johnny Spring

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.

Using soap is critical in fighting the virus

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 Ilala, Kenya.

Handwashing demonstration

We trained more than 30 people 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.

Trainers use teamwork during the handwashing demonstration

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.

Homemade mask tutorial

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.

Installing the prevention reminders chart at the spring

During training, we installed a new handwashing station with soap near the community’s water point, along with a sign with reminders of what we covered.

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.

The village elder addresses the training group and urges caution

Training participant Mr. Machoni said that he was lucky to have been taught how to make a face mask at home and how to make a handwashing leaky tin. He asked his village members to do as they were taught in order to prevent the spread of Coronavirus.

Social distancing check

We continue to stay in touch with this community as the pandemic progresses. We want to ensure their water point remains functional and their community stays informed about the virus.

Facilitators use visual aids to discuss disease transmission

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.

April, 2019: Ilala Community, Arnold Johnny Spring Project Complete

Ilala Community is celebrating their new protected spring, so celebrate with them! Arnold Johnny Spring has been transformed into a flowing, safe source of water thanks to your donation. The spring is protected from contamination, five sanitation platforms have been provided for the community, and training has been done on sanitation and hygiene.

Spring Protection

Construction at Arnold Johnny Spring was successful and water is now flowing from the discharge pipe.

"I would like to specifically appreciate [you] for considering this community for such a water facility. Thank you for your concern for communities and service to humanity. May the Lord bless you," said Phyllis Muhonje.

"At last the spring has been protected and we are assured of clean and safe water for our use!" said Mr. Shamwama.

The Process:

Community members provided all locally available construction materials, e.g bricks, wheelbarrows of clean sand, wheelbarrows of ballast, and gravel. Community members also hosted our artisans for the duration of construction.

The spring area was excavated with jembes, hoes, and spades to create space for setting the foundation of polyethylene, wire mesh, and concrete.

After the base had been set, both wing walls and the headwall were set in place using brickwork. The discharge pipe was fixed low in place through the headwall to direct the water from the reservoir to the drawing area.

As the wing walls and headwall cured, the stairs were set and ceramic tiles were fixed directly below the discharge pipe.

The ceramic tiles installed under the discharge pipes protect the concrete from the erosive force of the falling water and beautifies the spring. The process of plastering the headwall and wing walls on both sides reinforces the brickwork and prevents water from the reservoir from seeping through the walls and allows pressure to build in the collection box to push water up through the discharge pipe.

The concrete dried over the course of five days, during which a community member wetted the concrete to make sure it would dry without cracking. The source area was filled up with clean stones and sand and covered with a polyethylene membrane to eliminate any potential sources of contamination.

We went as a team to meet the community at the spring to do an official handing over ceremony. With this spring now handed over to the community, we will continue to follow up with the water committee to make sure everything runs smoothly. That committee has already led the community in building a wooden fence to protect the area behind the discharge pipe.

Sanitation Platforms

All five sanitation platforms have been installed and make wonderful, easy to clean latrine floors. These five families are happy about this milestone of having a latrine of their own. We are continuing to encourage families to finish building walls and roofs over their new latrine floors.

New Knowledge

Mr. Arnold Johnny and his sister-in-law worked with us to plan a hygiene and sanitation training for their community. They went door to door and made announcements to invite everyone who uses Arnold Johnny Spring for their water.

Participants arriving for training

Participants learned about:

– Leadership and governance
– Management and maintenance of the spring

Under this topic, the participants were informed on the best practices for maintaining the spring. They were advised to plant thorny shrubs behind the spring to add a natural fence to the fence they already built from sticks. They were also advised to plant grass to prevent erosion. They were urged to clean out the pipes before fetching water and to clean the stairs and pick up rubbish around the spring area.

During the training, we made it clear that our office is there and standing by to do major repairs to the protected spring. The community is trained on how to be accountable for any minor issues that arise (such as a crumbling stair). The assistant chief promised to help the community sort out any issue should it arise.

– Family planning
– Personal hygiene, including handwashing
– Dental hygiene
– Waterborne and water-related disease, along with water treatment methods

We got to know this community a lot better during training. There was a large graveyard at the family home where training was hosted. We inquired about the graveyard and learned there were four tombstones for family members who passed away. Then the training host walked some meters from his home and showed us two more markers: one for his wife and one for his daughter. Is the chairperson for the spring. He walked some meters from the compound where there were two more graves: one for his wife and one for his daughter.

Many people in Ilala lose their loved ones much too soon, and the entire community believes it's because of a curse. As a result of this fear, young people move away after they receive an education. Others fear to build permanent houses, believing if they live in something more temporary then the village curse might not affect their family. This fear has rendered the village to be so underdeveloped.

The host who showed us around and let us know about this issue is now the chairperson of the water committee. He told us that this training and the protection of Arnold Johnny Spring will breathe new life into the community. He knows that as the community sees things changing for the better, fear will be dispelled.

Thank You for making all of this possible!

February, 2019: Ilala Community, Arnold Johnny Spring Project Underway

Dirty water from Arnold Johnny Spring is making people in Ilala Community sick. Thanks to your generosity, we’re building a clean water point and much more.

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