Project Status



Project Type:  Borehole Well and Hand Pump

Regional Program: Port Loko, Sierra Leone WaSH Program

Impact: 263 Served

Project Phase:  In Service - Apr 2025

Functionality Status:  Functional

Project Features


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Community Profile

The 263 people of Masanneh Community struggle to access sufficient water. Their hand-dug well is overused, and their only other option is a distant stream. Both options risk their safety daily.

Field Officer Julius Sesay described the issues confronting the hand-dug well. He said, "The main water source has no gate. This will allow easy access for water users and animals to enter the well. Contamination is likely to occur during such situations. The lack of chlorination of the well also creates room for transmission of water-related illnesses to be experienced by water users. They are killing themselves slowly without knowing it."

Not only is the water they collect from both sources contaminated, but the journey is just as dangerous. Snakes, scorpions, and other poisonous creatures lurk in the bush surrounding the narrow road to the stream. However, sometimes, what they truly fear are other people.

"Some women will be afraid to go alone at the water point because the place is bushy," said Julius. There have been reported cases of sexual violence when women travel to the waterpoint alone.

Health and safety, unfortunately, are not the only consequences of these water sources. The well becomes extremely overcrowded, limiting the water collected and wasting too much time waiting for a turn. In the same way, the stream can run dry, and both take several days to recharge when overused.

This is 24-year-old farmer Kadiatu Kamara's (seen below at the swamp) reality every day. She shared her frustrations with trying to collect water from the community well. "The overcrowding at the main water source is affecting me. Some of the community members will come with ten to fifteen containers. Even when I plead with them to allow me to fetch water, they will deliberately refuse. It is sad that the others will still support them, including the pump caretaker himself. That is why I spend more time waiting for my turn."

"This is very stressful, especially when I could be occupied with a lot of things to do at home. I will not be able to fetch water at the time I need it. This affects me in cooking, cleaning the house, and bathing. I will use a lot of energy to pump water. The water that eventually comes out will not even be enough to fill one jerrycan. I will go home with little or no water at all," she continued.

Children are not exempt from the daily struggle. They are also tasked with collecting water for their households, often at the expense of their education. This is especially true for girls.

Mariama K., 16, seen below, is one of many girls who experience juggling their future with their present. She shared, "One of the challenges I face is when the water at the well becomes less, even pumping water from the well becomes difficult. I will use a lot of energy and have less water. The water will not even be sufficient for me to wash the dishes. Therefore, I must leave the water point to fetch water from the stream. My parents will not even want to know the difficulties I undergo. All they want to see at home is enough water."

"I spend a long time just to do a single trip to the water point mainly because of the distance. Another thing that leads to the delay is when the water in the stream becomes dirty. People [who] launder around the stream are contributing factors to this situation. I must wait patiently for the water to regain its normal color. This waiting time affects me, especially when I want to go to school," she continued.

"By the time I come from the waterpoint, I will barely have enough time to go to school. My dad will say these words to me. 'Now that you are already late for school, please follow me to the farm.' This is really beyond my wish. Since he is my dad, I must humbly obey. This situation is even affecting my performance at school because I end up missing a lot of important lessons that I will not be able to regain," said Mariama.

As you can tell, children like Mariama long for the opportunity to go to school; they know an education is vital to improving their futures. But without safe, easily accessible water, their education can't be prioritized.

The rehabilitation of their hand-dug well will significantly improve their situation. When a hand-dug well is rehabilitated, we drill down much deeper so more water can be accessed and the recharge speed of the well increases.

The Masanneh Community is looking for an opportunity to improve their lives, and access to a reliable, closely located well is the first step in that process. Then, people like Kadiatu will collect water efficiently without sacrificing other essential tasks. Hopefully, children like Mariama will have the chance to get an education because her family won't be as desperate for her to spend her time collecting water.

The Proposed Solution, Determined Together...

At The Water Project, everyone has a part in conversations and solutions. We operate in transparency, believing it benefits everyone. We expect reliability from one another as well as our water solutions. Everyone involved makes this possible through hard work and dedication.

In a joint discovery process, community members determine their most advantageous water solution alongside our technical experts. Read more specifics about this solution on the What We're Building tab of this project page. Then, community members lend their support by collecting needed construction materials (sometimes for months ahead of time!), providing labor alongside our artisans, sheltering and feeding the builders, and supplying additional resources.

Water Access for Everyone

This water project is one piece in a large puzzle. In Kenya, Sierra Leone, and Uganda, we're working toward complete coverage of reliable, maintained water sources that guarantee public access now and in the future within a 30-minute round trip for each community, household, school, and health center. One day, we hope to report that this has been achieved!

Training on Health, Hygiene & More

With the community's input, we've identified topics where training will increase positive health outcomes at personal, household, and community levels. We'll coordinate with them to find the best training date. Some examples of what we train communities on are:

  • Improved hygiene, health, and sanitation habits
  • Safe water handling, storage & treatment
  • Disease prevention and proper handwashing
  • Income-generation
  • Community leadership, governance, & election of a water committee
  • Operation and maintenance of the water point

Project Updates


April, 2025: Masanneh Community Well Rehabilitation Complete!

We are excited to share that your donation provided a safe, reliable well at Masanneh 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.

"I will be able to go early to the farm to work on a large scale. When I harvest, I will get enough products, and I will be able to sell [them] to get income. I will spend less time fetching water and spend more time doing my business which will lead me to walk [to] different communities to sell. Doing so will guarantee me to get more income," shared Ms. Kamara, 25.

Ms. Kadiatu Kamara at the rehabilitated well.

"I am happy today I have access to this new water well. Now, when I pump, the water comes out clean, and there is enough water at the well. I will not [have to] access the swamp water anymore. I will not get stuck or damage rubber buckets or see snakes in the bush. Drinking from this well [will] help me not to be exposed to water-related sicknesses like diarrhea. I will practice hygiene properly, said 18-year-old Kadiatu.

Kadiatu pouring clean water!

After construction was complete, we held a dedication ceremony to officially give responsibility for the well to the community members. Several local dignitaries attended the ceremony, including representatives from the Port Loko District Council and the Ministry of Water Resources. Each official gave a short speech thanking everyone who contributed to the rehabilitation of the water project and encouraging everyone to take good care of it. Then, Ms. Kamara and Kadiatu made statements on their community's behalf. The ceremony concluded with celebration, singing, and dancing.

Clean Water Restored

The community provided space for the team to store their belongings and meals for the duration of their stay. The following day, the work began!

First, we raised the tripod, the structure we use to hold and maneuver each drilling tool. Next, we measured the hand-dug well's original depth and socketed the pipes to install a casing.

Finally, we started to drill! We reached a final depth of 14 meters with water at 4 meters. The team installed the cylinder as far below the water table as possible so that the community has reliable access throughout the year.

With drilling complete, we installed screening and a filter pack to keep out debris when the water is pumped.

Next, we bailed the well and flushed it, clearing any debris generated by the drilling process. Lastly, we tested the water flow to ensure the well would provide clean water with minimal effort at the pump.

Bailing the well to ensure clean water.

As the project neared completion, we built a new cement platform, walls, and drainage system around the well to seal it off from surface-level contaminants. The drainage system helps to redirect spilled water to help avoid standing water at the well, which is unhygienic and a breeding ground for disease-carrying mosquitoes.

Constructing the well pad.

At last, we installed the pump and conducted a water quality test. The results showed that this was clean water fit for drinking!

The well is complete!

Community Education

Before conducting any hygiene training, we collaborated with the local water user committee to understand the community’s challenges and lack of sanitation facilities. 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 before the training.

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. Nurse Hassanatu Dumbuya was instrumental in reinforcing each lesson.

Nurse Hassanatu Dumbuya discussing vaccinations.

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 taught about proper handwashing, personal and menstrual hygiene, and healthy habits such as using latrines and maintaining a balanced diet. We discussed how disease transmission and water hygiene are crucial to community health. We emphasized the importance of maintaining and caring for the well pump and the cost recovery system.

Handwash training.

One lesson that was enlightening to the community was regarding HIV/AIDS. The facilitator led the session, and everyone was very engaged and left with new knowledge for a healthier life!

Ms. Kamara, who is the public relations officer on the water user committee, shared what she took away from the training.

Ms. Kamara participating in training.

"Good/bad hygiene: This topic was interesting because it shows the way some of us treat the latrine we are using. I was surprised to see one of the posters that was wide open. This made some of us laugh. Others thought it was a dwelling house. It was when they looked closely they realized that it was a latrine. Even though we laughed, the message about this was clear. We should take care of our latrines and always ensure we cover the manhole."

Thank you for making all of this possible!




February, 2025: Exciting Progress in Masanneh Community!

We’re thrilled to share that, thanks to your generous support, significant change is coming for 24-year-old farmer Kadiatu Kamara and the entire Masanneh Community. Construction has begun on the well project, bringing them one step closer to having clean, reliable water.

But that's not all—during construction, we’re also providing vital health training. These sessions equip the community with essential hygiene practices, ensuring that the benefits of clean water extend to lasting health improvements.

We’re so grateful for your role in making this possible. Stay tuned for more updates—soon, we’ll be celebrating the arrival of safe water in Masanneh Community!




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!


Contributors

Grace United Methodist Church of Merritt Island
Greenspark
Jade Yoga
Data Abstract Solutions, Inc.
North Dunedin Baptist Church
Hattiesburg Crusade for Christ
92 individual donor(s)