The Water Project’s WaSH program in Port Loko district, Sierra Leone consists of a concentrated network of new, rehabilitated, and maintained water wells. Explore these projects that remain at or near 100% functionality because of quality implementation, customized hygiene, sanitation, and maintenance training, and reliable monitoring, evaluation, and resolution relationships.
Abundant water is often right under our feet! Beneath the Earth’s surface, rivers called aquifers flow through layers of sediment and rock, providing a constant supply of safe water. For borehole wells, we drill deep into the earth, allowing us to access this water which is naturally filtered and protected from sources of contamination at the surface level. First, we decide where to drill by surveying the area and determining where aquifers are likely to sit. To reach the underground water, our drill rigs plunge through meters (sometimes even hundreds of meters!) of soil, silt, rock, and more. Once the drill finds water, we build a well platform and attach a hand pump. If all goes as planned, the community is left with a safe, closed water source providing around five gallons of water per minute! Learn more here!
Rehabilitation Project
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 it because a project fell into disrepair.
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? 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 the well and install a hand pump.
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.
Local Leadership
Water projects don’t last long without the help of local leaders. They’re the ones who explain the situation on the ground to us (and our donors!) while also outlining our goals and intentions for the community members.
The Water Project identifies, supports, and partners with local organizations that share our vision of reliable, verifiable, and clean water. Together, we build lasting local solutions and undertake ongoing monitoring and resolution to ensure our solutions are still working years into the future.
Community Engagement
We engage the communities we work with at every step of a water project.
These interactions are rooted in relationship-building. We involve the community in implementation, set expectations for water point management, prepare community members for ongoing costs, and more. All of this happens before a water project is installed.
The people receiving a water project get a leading seat at the table. Every water project we implement requires negotiations with several interested parties. During this step and every other, we continuously try to embody our favorite ideals: reliability, relationship, and trust.
Hygiene and Sanitation Training
For many communities, water is just the beginning. Living without water deprioritizes things that deplete water rations, like bathing, cleaning, and even handwashing. Also, in some cases, community members who couldn’t afford to go to school never learned topics usually covered in health classes. A steady water supply on its own won’t solve these issues, which is why we train the people in every community, school, and health center we provide with a water project.
Although we tailor the subjects we cover in each training to each region and community, there are some staples we always touch on: water handling and storage; personal and environmental hygiene; disease transmission; how to form and maintain a water user committee; and the operation/maintenance of the community’s new water project.
With each training, our goal is to empower communities to take back their personal health so growth and development can begin.
Monitoring and Resolution
Sub-Saharan Africa is littered with broken and abandoned wells installed by well-meaning people.
We love celebrating when a project is complete and a community has access to clean, safe water. However, reliability is the true measure of our impact.
Water can only transform lives if it’s always there. Water-fetchers need to know that when they visit one of our water points, there will always be water. Sometimes, it only takes one sip of dirty water to make someone sick, even if they’d been drinking clean water for months beforehand.
This is why we measure our water projects’ downtime in hours, not days or weeks. Each hour is critical to someone’s life, and each hour someone has to wait for clean water is another opportunity to go back to the rivers, swamps, and scoop holes they resorted to before our water project was installed. Our past water projects are just as important as what we tackle in the future.
The Water Project monitors all of our water projects to make sure water service continues. To learn more about how you can help with ongoing monitoring, evaluation, and resolution, read about The Water Promise: a group of amazing, world-changing monthly donors who understand the power of keeping water flowing long after the installation is done.
Project Timeline FAQ
Project Status
We’re working hard to make sure your gifts result in a lasting water project for the community it serves. Our engagement with a community begins many months before construction and lasts years after construction. The timeline here is focused on the physical construction of the water project. There is also training and engagement work that has already started.
Water project construction in the developing world is hard work. A lot of things can and do cause delays - which are normal. We attempt to make our best judgment of when construction will be complete, but the circumstances surrounding actual "in the field" conditions are far from our control.
Weather, supply availability, government paperwork, and progress of community involvement are just a few of the variables that can delay (and sometimes speed up) a project's completion.
We will always tell you if anything changes. And, if you get a notice like this – it’s actually further proof your gifts are being carefully used towards a water project that lasts.
Click icons to learn about each feature.
Report Submitted by Moses Gbassay Kebbie, Report Writer
Born July, 1986 in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Moses now lives in Port Loko. He is married and he is a Christian.
Moses has been a Report Writer since 2021, with Mariatu's Hope, The Water Project's trusted partner in our Port Loko, Sierra Leone WaSH Program.
The private well in Masoila at the local mosque is shared by so many people both in and outside of Masoila that no one can get the water they need.
Because water sources are few and far between in this area, people from all over come to the well to fetch water for their everyday activities. But this leaves the 250 people who live within the community waiting in long lines during the well's opening hours.
The pump's caretaker will only allow people to collect water at certain times. No matter how early Masoila's people wake up in the morning or how quickly they can reach the well after school or work, they still might end up leaving the well with an empty container, wondering how they will get the water their family needs for drinking, cooking, cleaning, bathing, and more. Sometimes, the well pump breaks or goes dry, disrupting lives even more.
"There are people in the community that would bribe the pump caretaker just for them to be able to fetch water on time," said our field officer Moses. "This really drives the others not to be able to fetch water."
And what's worse is that the water from the well is neither monitored or treated, so it causes perpetual cases of typhoid, cholera, dysentery, and skin rashes. This not only impacts people's long-term health, but it stops them from earning proper livelihoods and learning in school.
"The only water source I have to access is far away from [my] house, and it is restricted sometimes to get water," explained 30-year-old food trader Adama Osman Kamara (pictured below carrying water from the well).
Adama supplements the inadequate well water by collecting rainwater - but that only helps during the parts of the year when the rains come. So she has to be perpetually creative in getting water for her family and her food-selling business.
"During the dry season, I had a lot of constraints for water, and I [had to] hire a motorbike to fetch water for money, which affects me economically," Adama explained. "In addition, I normally go late to my place of business, because of the time I spend at the water source to fetch water. By the time [I have] arrived at the market, I [will have] lost most of my customers.
"Sometimes I cannot prepare food and it causes me to buy food from the street, and I cannot get the taste of the food like what I prepared to eat from my own cooking. Not to talk about laundering, bathing, and cooking: all difficult to complete on time. I will be grateful to have this new water source constructed in our community."
The water crisis in Masoila affects children, too. Like 14-year-old Warrah K. (pictured below coming from the well), who is most often late to school after waiting in the long lines at the well.
"I normally receive lashings from my class teacher because of my lateness at most times," Warrah said. "Sometimes, I [will] not bathe, and I will take days [wearing] the same clothes as a result of the water challenge in our community. This affects me not to practice proper hygiene behavior at home. Providing us with a water source from this organization would be good for us, and this will us to complete domestic activities on time."
What We Can Do:
New Well
Where we will be drilling is centrally located and will relieve many people of the long journey to fetch water and the challenge of accessing clean water.
Our team will drive over the LS200 mud rotary drill rig and set up camp for a couple of nights. Once the well is drilled to a sufficient water column, it will be cased, developed, and then tested. If these tests are positive, our mechanics will install a new India Mark II pump.
By drilling this borehole, the community will be provided with plenty of accessible, clean drinking water.
Training
There will be hygiene and sanitation training sessions offered for three days in a row.
Community members will learn how to make a hands-free handwashing station called the "tippy-tap." We will use these tippy taps for handwashing demonstrations and will also teach about other tools like dish racks and the importance of properly penning in animals. We will highlight the need to keep restrooms clean, among many other topics.
This training will also strengthen a water user committee that will manage and maintain this new well. They will enforce proper behavior and report to us whenever they need our help in solving a serious problem, like a pump breakdown.
Project Updates
May, 2023: Masoila Community Borehole Well Complete!
We are excited to share that there is now a safe, reliable borehole well at Masoila Community. As a result, community members no longer rely on unsafe water to meet their daily needs. We also conducted hygiene and sanitation training, which focused on healthy practices such as handwashing and using latrines.
"Before, I faced a big challenge [accessing] water in this community," said 30-year-old trader Adama Osman Kamara, whom we also interviewed when we first entered Masoila.
Adama (right, in the red shirt) splashes water with another woman at the new well.
"When I woke up early in the morning, I collected my rubber buckets and then rushed to the water well, and sometimes I [waited a long] time before I could fetch water," Adama continued. "The water that I fetched would not be enough to carry out my daily schedule. Sometimes people [would] form a queue at the water well, and the owner of the well locked the well. I [would] return home with empty jerrycans. But today, I have access to clean water, and I would like to say thanks. Now, I [will] complete my housework on time."
"I am happy today because [you] provided a new water well in my community," said 13-year-old Baindu M.
Baindu fills her container with water from the new well.
"I want to say a big thanks. Before, it [was] a very difficult task for me to get enough water home on time. The only water well in this community [was] not enough, and it [would get] overcrowded. Sometimes, I [would] not return home quick[ly], and the majority of people [would] not get enough water. The burden of fetching water [would become] worse for me. But today, [you have provided a] new water well in my community, and with this water well, I [will] drink safe and clean water."
Community members celebrate at the dedication ceremony.
We held a dedication ceremony to officially hand over the well to the community members. Several local dignitaries attended the ceremony, including representatives from the Port Loko District Council, the Ministry of Water Resources, and the Ward Council. Each official gave a short speech thanking everyone who contributed to this water project and reminding everyone to take good care of it. Then, Adama and Baindu made statements on their community's behalf. The ceremony concluded with celebration, singing, and dancing.
New Well
The drill team arrived the day before beginning work. They set up camp and unpacked all their tools and supplies to prepare for drilling the next day. The community provided space for the team to store their belongings and meals for the duration of their stay. The following day, work began.
Our team dug two pits next to the drill rig, one for the drill’s water supply and another for what the drill pulls out of the borehole. In some cases, we order a private supplier to deliver the water for drilling since water access is already challenging.
Day one of drilling began as the team mixed water with bentonite, an absorbent clay, in the two dug pits. Next, the team fixed a four-inch carbide-tipped bit to the five-foot-long drill stem. They started the mud pump to supply water to the drill rig so that drilling could begin!
After putting each five-foot length of drill stem into the hole, the team took material samples. We labeled the bags to review them later and determine the aquifer locations.
On the second day of drilling, the team expanded the hole and cleared it of mud. After reaching a total depth of 29 meters, the team forcefully pumped clean water into the well to remove any dirt and debris from the drilling process. We then protected the screened pipe by adding a filter pack. The team hoisted the temporary drilling casing to fortify the pipes with cement.
Testing the well's yield.
Next, we bailed the well by hand for three days before conducting a yield test to verify the water quantity. This well has a static water level of ten meters. With these excellent results, we installed a stainless steel pump. Water quality test results showed that this was clean water fit for drinking!
New Knowledge
Before conducting any hygiene training, we called and visited the local water user committee to understand the community’s challenges and lack of sanitation facilities. We shared the findings from our discussions with the committee members to help them make the necessary adjustments before the training began. For example, we identified households without handwashing stations or ones that may need to repair their latrines. With this information, community members worked together to improve hygiene and sanitation at home.
We also invited a nurse from the local clinic to help explain some topics and spread awareness about Sierra Leone's free vaccinations for children under five. She was instrumental in reinforcing each lesson.
After this preparatory period, we scheduled a time when members from each household using the water point could attend a three-day hygiene and sanitation training. We then dispatched our teams to the agreed-upon location to hold the meeting.
Training topics covered included handwashing and tippy taps, good and bad hygiene habits, teen pregnancy, worms and parasites, proper dental hygiene, menstrual hygiene, proper care of the well's pump, keeping the water clean, the cost recovery system, the importance of using dish racks and clotheslines, the importance of toilets, keeping latrines clean, balanced diets, the diarrhea doll, and disease transmission and prevention, COVID-19, Ebola, Hepatitis, HIV and AIDS.
The community nurse teaches the gathered community members.
One of the topics that participants were most interested to hear about was water-related disease, and specifically typhoid, which is prevalent in this area. One woman, Fatima, explained her story of contracting typhoid. She drank swamp water without boiling or treating it, and ended up with a runny stomach, skin rash, and general malaise. It wasn't until she started feeling very bad that her family brought her to the hospital, where she was diagnosed with typhoid. She cautioned her fellow community members not to ignore symptoms that don't seem severe and to go to the clinic or hospital whenever they feel poorly.
A facilitator shows the community an image of a properly constructed latrine.
Another topic that the community was proud to talk about was open defecation, which is the practice of relieving oneself out in the open rather than in a latrine or restroom. When a facilitator showed a picture of a child defecating behind a home rather than using the latrine, community members laughed and said this used to be a common sight in Masoila. However, since our in-country teams first made contact with them, they have built latrines for every household, which has made it easier for parents to train their young ones to use them. This alone should go a long way in curbing disease in Masoila.
"The new knowledge I have gained from these three days of training has helped me to change all my bad hygiene practices," said Adama Osman Kamara (quoted earlier). "This training has impacted me to know things that I did not know before, especially how I get typhoid, worms, diarrhea, and other diseases through contaminated water. The importance of family planning also [had a] great impact on me, [and] taking the children to the hospital when they are sick. I will make sure I sensitize others who did not have the opportunity to attend this training for them to know the dangers of bad hygiene deeds [and] that washing our hands with soap and clean water after using the toilet can save us from deadly diseases."
Conclusion
This project required a substantial collaboration between our staff, our in-country teams, and the community members. When an issue arises concerning the well, community members are 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 their local field officers to assist them.
Also, we will continue to offer them unmatchable support as a part of our monitoring and maintenance program. We walk with each community, problem-solving together when they face challenges with functionality, seasonality, or water quality. Together, all these components help us strive for enduring access to reliable, clean, and safe water for this community.
With your contribution, one more piece has been added to a large puzzle of water projects. In our target areas, we’re working toward complete coverage of reliable, maintained water sources within a 30-minute round trip for each community, household, school, and health center. With this in mind, search through our upcoming projects to see which community you can help next!
Thank you for making all of this possible!
March, 2023: Masoila Community New Well Underway!
A severe clean water shortage in Masoila Community 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!
Project Photos
Project Type
Abundant water is often right under our feet! Beneath the Earth’s surface, rivers called aquifers flow through layers of sediment and rock, providing a constant supply of safe water. For borehole wells, we drill deep into the earth, allowing us to access this water which is naturally filtered and protected from sources of contamination at the surface level. First, we decide where to drill by surveying the area and determining where aquifers are likely to sit. To reach the underground water, our drill rigs plunge through meters (sometimes even hundreds of meters!) of soil, silt, rock, and more. Once the drill finds water, we build a well platform and attach a hand pump. If all goes as planned, the community is left with a safe, closed water source providing around five gallons of water per minute! Learn more here!
Water Allows Isha Good Health and Time to Learn!
May, 2024
A year ago, your generous donation helped the Masoila Community in Sierra Leone access clean water – creating a life-changing moment for Isha. Thank you!
Keeping The Water Promise
There's an incredible community of monthly donors who have come alongside you in supporting clean water in Masoila Community 8.
This giving community supports ongoing sustainability programs that help Masoila Community 8 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!
Last year, your gift unlocked the potential for a brighter future for Isha. Since then, she and the Masoila Community of 250 residents have had clean, reliable water. Your contribution has made a significant impact. Thank you for making a difference!
"Since there is a well in the community, it is easy for me to fetch water now, as I do not need to go out of the community to fetch water," said Isha.
Before the Well Installation
Like many children in Sierra Leone, fourteen-year-old Isha is responsible for collecting water to meet her and her family’s daily water needs. Before the water intervention last year, that task stole her time and negatively affected her learning opportunities.
"When there was no well in this community, I used to go to other communities to fetch water. There was always a total crowd at the water source since it was the only well [where] we used to fetch water. With this negative effect, I [was] always late to go to school and that affected my academic performance. It was really difficult to fetch water in this community before the completion of this well," said Isha.
Since the Well Installation
Your generous gift last year was much more than a simple donation; it was a powerful statement about your commitment to this community and Isha's future. By supporting the water solution, you made clean water an everyday reality for her, fostering hope for a brighter future.
Isha at the well.
Reliable and clean water lays the groundwork for improved health, education, and economic possibilities, allowing people like Isha to thrive. We frequently hear from those we interview that "water is life!"
The Future is Looking Bright!
A year ago, you made a difference for Isha and the rest of her community. This is just the first chapter of their story as access to clean water continues to improve their lives!
At The Water Project, we value sustainability and want to ensure that people continue to thrive. We commit to monitoring this project to ensure the water is always flowing and safe to consume. We inspect the system hardware, track water availability, conduct sanitary inspections, and collect water quality samples to identify risks. We work with our team on the ground to resolve them.
You gave Isha a crucial tool for achieving her dreams: access to clean water. Together, we can excitedly expect that with this precious resource, her enthusiasm and courage will help her fulfill her dreams.
"Since there is a well in the community, it is easy for me to fetch water now, as I do not need to go out of the community to fetch water. The new well has impacted my life by going to school on time and also providing safe and pure drinking water for me. I will be able to improve my academic activities because I will have enough time to study. Also, I will have safe and pure drinking water, which will prevent me from waterborne diseases," concluded Isha.
Isha cleaning her bucket.
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 Masoila Community 8 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 Masoila Community 8 – 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.
Contributors
International Studies Magnet School Swarthmore Presbyterian Church Data Abstract Solutions, Inc. Data Abstract Solutions, Inc. North Dunedin Baptist Church 89 individual donor(s)