April, 2022: Muting'ong'o Community Spring Protection Complete!

Muting'ong'o Community now has access to clean water! We transformed Chivuyi Spring into a flowing source of naturally filtered water thanks to your donation. Our team also trained the community on improved sanitation and hygiene practices. Together, these components will unlock the opportunity for community members to live better, healthier lives.

Alexander Chivuyi, 48, the spring's namesake, said, "I will drink water as often as possible without being worried of getting sick. This will keep us well hydrated and healthy."

Alexander continued to share how he hopes access to the protected spring will empower him in the future.

"Since waterborne and water-related illness will be a thing of the past, money that was used as hospital bills will be channeled to paying school fees and taking care of other family needs. During dry seasons, I will use clean water from the protected spring to water vegetables to be used by my family, and I will sell the surplus in order to earn an extra income to take care of my family.

"Thank you so much for considering our spring for protection. Pass our appreciation to the donors too. God bless you all," Alexander concluded.

Children were just as excited as adults about the new waterpoint.

"I started fetching water from this spring from the age of three and it has been one of my scariest experiences," said Monica B., age 11. "But since we didn't have an alternative, my siblings and I would make several trips to the spring daily to fetch the dirty water."

"I am glad we now have clean water and drawing the water is safe and fast," Monica concluded.

Preparing for Spring Protection

Community members worked together to source and carry all locally available construction materials to the spring. These included bricks, sand, stones, and fencing poles. Some people also chiseled away at large rocks to break them down into gravel. Because people have to carry most items by hand, the material-collection process can take anywhere from a few weeks to months.

When the community was ready, we sent a lorry to deliver the remaining construction materials, including cement, plastic tarps, and hardware. Then, our construction artisan and field officers deployed to the spring to begin work. Individual households provided meals throughout each day to sustain the work team.

From Open Source to Protected Spring: A Step-by-Step Process

At last, it was time to dig in at the spring! Locals lent their strength to the artisans to help with the manual labor.

First, we cleared and excavated the spring area. Next, we dug a drainage channel below the spring and several runoff diversion channels above and around the spring. These help to divert surface contaminants away.

To ensure community members could still access water throughout the construction process, we also dug temporary channels from the spring's eye around the construction site. This allowed water to flow without disrupting community members' tasks or the construction work.

Excavation created space for setting the spring's foundation, made of thick plastic tarp, wire mesh, concrete, and waterproof cement. After establishing the base, we started brickwork to build the headwall, wing walls, and stairs.

Once the walls had grown tall enough, we began one of the most crucial steps: setting the discharge pipe. The discharge pipe needs to be positioned low enough in the headwall so the water level never rises above the spring's eye, yet high enough to allow room for the average jerrycan (a 20-liter container) to sit beneath the pipe without making contact.

If we place the discharge pipe too high above the spring's eye, backpressure could force water to emerge elsewhere. Too low, and community members would not be able to access the water easily. We embedded the pipe using clay (or mortar when clay is in short supply) and placed it at an incline to ensure water flows in the right direction.

In coordination with brickwork, we pitched stones on both sides of the spring's drainage channel. We then cemented and plastered each stone, forming the rub walls. These walls discourage people and animals from standing in that area, which could cause soil erosion and a clogged drainage area.

We then cemented and plastered both sides of the headwall and wing walls. These finishing layers reinforce the brickwork and prevent water in the reservoir from seeping through the walls. In turn, enough pressure builds in the reservoir box to push water out through the discharge pipe.

As the headwall and wing walls cured, we cemented and plastered the stairs and installed four tiles beneath the discharge pipe. The tiles protect the concrete from the falling water's erosive force while beautifying the spring and facilitating easy cleaning of the spring floor.

The final stage of construction is backfilling the reservoir box behind the discharge pipe. We cleared the collection box of any debris that may have fallen during construction. Then we redirected the temporary diversion channels back into the reservoir box, channeling water into this area for the first time. We closed off all of the other exits to start forcing water through the discharge pipe only.

We filled up the reservoir area with the large, clean stones community members had gathered, arranging them in layers like a well-fitting puzzle. We covered the rocks with a thick plastic tarp to minimize potential contamination sources, then piled enough dirt on top to compensate for future settling.

Community members transplanted grass onto the backfilled soil to help prevent erosion. Finally, the collection area was fenced to discourage any person or animal from walking on it. Compaction can lead to disturbances in the backfill layers and potentially compromise water quality.

The entire construction process took about two weeks of work and patience to allow the cement and plaster to finish curing. As soon as the spring was ready, people got the okay from our field officers to fetch water.

We officially handed over the spring to mark the community's ownership of the water point. Happiness, thanksgiving, and appreciation were the order of the day, flowing in all directions.

Our field officer shared about an elderly woman in the community who was very happy that their spring was finally protected.

Mrs. Jentrix Chivuyi, who is over 70 years old, said, "My family and I have suffered for [a] long [time] for lack of clean water, especially for drinking."

She continued, "When you came and promised that you would protect our spring, I was excited, but at the same time I thought you might be making empty promises just like others had done before. The day cement was delivered, that is when I knew that you and your organization were serious. We are privileged to be one of the beneficiaries from your work through the donors' support. God bless you all.

"When God calls [me] home, I am glad that the people who will come to celebrate my life will have clean water to use and drink, too. My current family and the ones who are not yet born will not be affected by waterborne and water-related infections anymore. I am very grateful beyond words," said Jentrix.

Training on Health, Hygiene, COVID-19, and More

Together with the community, we found their preferred date for training while considering other community calendar events, such as the agricultural season and social events. We requested a representative group of community members to attend training to relay the information learned to the rest of their family and friends.

When the day arrived, facilitators, Christine, Patience, Audrey, and David deployed to the site to lead the event. 11 people attended the training, including ten women and one man. We held the training at the compound of Mr. Chivuyi under trees, which provided enough shade for both the participants and facilitators.

We covered several topics, including community participation in the project, leadership and governance, personal and environmental hygiene, water handling and treatment, spring maintenance, dental hygiene, the ten steps of handwashing, disease prevention, and how to make and use handwashing stations.

During the leadership and governance session, we held an election for the newly formed water user committee leaders, who will oversee the maintenance of the spring. We also brainstormed income-generating activities. Community members can now start a group savings account for any future minor repairs to the spring and a cooperative lending group, enabling them to develop small businesses.

Soap-making was one of the most memorable topics covered during the training. As they were stirring the soap mixture the women sang and danced to express their excitement for having learned this new skill. They were very happy when the facilitators said they could divide up the liquid soap they had created to take home for free.

"This training has been very educative on matters to do with hygiene and sanitation. As a young mother, I will put into practice what I have learned today so that my family can lead a healthy life. We will take good care of the spring since we have been taught how to do so," said 22-year-old housewife and secretary of the newly formed water committee, Nipher Mukangai.

When an issue arises concerning the spring, the water user committee is equipped with the necessary skills to rectify the problem and ensure the water point works appropriately. However, if the issue is beyond their capabilities, they can contact our field officers to assist them. Also, we will continue to offer them unmatchable support as a part of our ongoing monitoring and maintenance program.

Thank you for making all of this possible!

March, 2022: Chivuyi Spring Protection Underway!

A severe clean water shortage in Muting'ong'o drains people’s time, energy, and health. Thanks to your generosity, we’re working to install a clean water point 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 more good news!