5 WaSH for Schools Projects in Sierra Leone

WaSH for Schools is a comprehensive water program that includes a complete water source (a well) and complete sanitation facilities (latrines) for a school.  These larger scale projects ensure that the schools are equipped with a complete water and sanitation solution.  By combining a new water source with latrines and washing stations, the health improvements are often far more dramatic than a single water source would be.  Girls benefit the most as safety and dignity are restored, enabling them to attend school without interruptions.

Rehabilitation is not just fixing a pump - it’s total community re-engagement.

There’s only one thing we can think of that might be worse than not having safe water: having safe water, and then losing if because a project fell into disrepair.

It’s estimated 50% of projects in Sub-Saharan Africa are no longer functional. A majority of these projects are dug wells and boreholes with hand pumps. Though a hand pump is low-tech, cost-effective and a great solution for providing safe water - it’s also among the most susceptible to failure.

When working in a region, The Water Project seeks to provide adequate water coverage for communities across the region. Inevitably, we find dug well and boreholes projects installed, and then abandoned by other organizations and government contracts. We believe there is great value in building on what already exists - what is already present in a community - even if what’s exists is not working. After all, this broken well represents a significant investment from the past and repairing it shows a community our investment in them.

Rehabilitation often proves to be a big challenge, as many wells have sit idle for years and there is typically little information about the specifics of the well. A borehole and dug well rehabilitation involves quite a bit of discovery. First, our teams work to discover as much as they can about the initial project. What materials were used? Was the borehole/hand-dug well properly constructed? What is the static water level and well yield? Are there any known sources of contamination? Many of these questions can only be answered by diving in, and doing “the work” which makes up a rehabilitation.

Once our teams have found the problem, they find the solution. Then, they reconstruct a concrete apron around the well, and install a hand pump.

Program engagement and training with communities takes into account rehabilitation was needed and alters the program to suit the needs of the community. After all - engaging with this community in the same way which led to the initial, failed project will not bring new results. Our teams work to understand the social and support reasons leading to initial failure, and make those areas a focus of our ongoing engagement with communities.