Project Status



Project Type:  Dug Well and Hand Pump

Regional Program: Western Kenya WaSH Program

Impact: 450 Served

Project Phase:  In Service - Oct 2016

Functionality Status:  Functional

Last Checkup: 02/07/2024

Project Features


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Community Profile

This project is a part of our shared program with Safe Water and Sustainable Hygiene Initiative (SAWASHI). Our team is pleased to directly share the below report (edited for clarity, as needed).

Welcome to the Community

Namushiya Community is home to farming families; the men work all day on the land, and the women work in the home and at the markets.  The majority of crops grown here are maize, bean, and potato.

If a young person can get their hands on a motorbike, they often choose to employ themselves with taxiing locals to and fro for money. This job tends to draw them away from school. When a child here stays in school, they will attend Namushiya Primary and then Namushiya Secondary School.

Water Situation

The school and community had always relied on the same water well. This well served the people for a long time, from the year 1987 when it was installed until 2007 when the pump was vandalized. Kenya Finland Company dug the shallow well in the school compound to give students and locals the chance to improve health, hygiene and sanitation. The area became so reliant on the source that when the pump was vandalized and removed, they constructed a hatch cover and started accessing water with a bucket and rope. The school and its neighbors still access the well's water on a daily basis, but consequently suffer from waterborne diseases such as typhoid and dysentery.

With a pump and a proper well pad, the water inside the well used to be safe for consumption. Since the pump was removed and the well pad degraded, water is now open to contamination from garbage and runoff that flows through the cracks during the rains. The bucket and rope contraption that is lowered inside the well also introduces dangerous contaminants from human hands and other sources. Community members also use another hand-dug well that is in the same state as this school well.

Because of the high rate of waterborne disease after using this well, mothers and children often walk long distances in search of safer sources.

Sanitation Situation

A little over half of households in Namushiya have some type of latrine. Most of these are pits surrounded by a superstructure made of wood, mud, cow dung and grass. Not many families have bathing rooms, hand-washing stations, dish racks or clotheslines. We took pictures of what we could find and included them in the "See Photos & Video" section.

Even if there's a little knowledge about hygiene and sanitation practices here, it's being ignored because of the common belief that it's a hassle to take these steps.

Plans: Hygiene and Sanitation Training and Hand-Washing Stations

We met Isaac Lunani during our visit. He's noticed that "a large percentage of people in this community are diagnosed with typhoid and diarrhea. This is a result of poor hygiene practices like drinking untreated water and eating dirty food."

Our hygiene and sanitation training will address the above topics and many more. We will treat how to properly fetch, treat, and store water. We will train on proper food preparation and storage. Training will emphasize the importance of having and using a latrine, as well as having a place to wash hands and how to do so. We believe that hand-washing is one of the most important factors in preventing sickness, so the two hand-washing stations will be delivered by the project's completion.

Training will last for two days. Those who attend will form a water user committee that takes responsibility for overseeing and maintaining the  rehabilitated well.

Plans: Well Rehabilitation

The schools and their neighbors claim that the well within the school compound has never dried. With a proper AfriDev pump and a new well pad, this source will become not only more sustainable, but safe. Out of the two wells in this area, this is the better choice for rehabilitation.

We measured a total depth of 8.4 meters and a static water level of 5.2 meters. The inside has a brick lining of a one meter diameter.

Rehabilitation will include reconstruction of the well pad, flashing, test pumping, treatment, and pump installation.

Once this project is complete, we and the community believe that waterborne disease will drastically decrease. Academic performance will increase in the local schools, and more time will be spent on economic activities in the community!

Project Updates


December, 2017: A Year Later: Namushiya Community

A year ago, generous donors helped rehabilitate a well with Namushiya Community in Western Kenya. Because of these gifts and contributions from our monthly donors, partners can visit project sites throughout the year, strengthening relationships with communities and evaluating the actual water project. These consistent visits allow us to learn vital lessons and hear amazing stories – we’re excited to share this one from our partner, Paul Weringa, with you.




Project Photos


Project Type

Hand-dug wells have been an important source of water throughout human history! Now, we have so many different types of water sources, but hand-dug wells still have their place. Hand dug wells are not as deep as borehole wells, and work best in areas where there is a ready supply of water just under the surface of the ground, such as next to a mature sand dam. Our artisans dig down through the layers of the ground and then line the hole with bricks, stone, or concrete, which prevent contamination and collapse. Then, back up at surface level, we install a well platform and a hand pump so people can draw up the water easily.


A Year Later: Namushiya Community

December, 2017

Being the head student, I used to send students out of school to find clean water for teachers and kitchen purposes. Today, the students don’t go out. They have time for studies hence an improvement in their academic performance.

Keeping The Water Promise

There's an incredible community of monthly donors who have come alongside you in supporting clean water in Namushiya Well Rehabilitation Project.

This giving community supports ongoing sustainability programs that help Namushiya Well Rehabilitation Project 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, generous donors helped rehabilitate a well with Namushiya Community in Western Kenya. Because of these gifts and contributions from our monthly donors, partners can visit project sites throughout the year, strengthening relationships with communities and evaluating the actual water project. These consistent visits allow us to learn vital lessons and hear amazing stories – we’re excited to share this one from our partner, Paul Weringa with you.


People living in Namushiya no longer suffer from typhoid and cholera thanks to the overhaul of this water point. Before the rehabilitation, it was an open hole in the ground completely susceptible to contamination - especially since it was right under the shade of several trees. Now it is protected by a well pad and easily accessible thanks to an AfriDev pump. Below is a video of two primary students who came to the well to wash their bowls after lunch.

We met with the well's caretaker, Isaak Lunani. "The outbreak of these diseases had an effect on our lives. Young children lost their lives, our little money was spent on medication and funeral expenses, worsening the level of our poverty.

The performance of children in school has improved. As we all know that when a child is sick, their performance is affected. This was the case here when the children complained of stomach pains. But today, they have enough time to spend in class and with their teachers. The project has also brought cohesion between the school, churches and community. No conflicts," he shared.

Paul and Manoa at the well.

Manoa Nyamu is a 17-year-old student of nearby Namushiya Secondary School. He reports that the entire school relies on this clean water source. "Initially, I used to carry drinking water from home because the hole here had dead things that contaminated the water. Since its rehabilitation, life has become easier for me in school. There is a great improvement in my studies. Being the head student, I used to send students out of school to find clean water for teachers and kitchen purposes. Today, the students don’t go out. They have time for studies hence an improvement in their academic performance," he said.


The Water Project and our partners are committed to consistent monitoring of each water source. Our monitoring and evaluation program, made possible by monthly donors, allows us to visit communities up to 4 times a year. Read more about our program 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 Namushiya Well Rehabilitation Project 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 Namushiya Well Rehabilitation Project – 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.