Rehabilitation Project
This project was implemented by another partner, but is now monitored and maintained by The Water Project together with Mariatu's Hope.
When the Sierra Leone team arrived, 500 residents were dependent on an unprotected hand dug well, unprotected spring, boreholes, protected wells and various forms of surface water all located a kilometer outside the community. The community's use of pit latrines will help prevent further spread of disease in the area and help to promote good hygiene behaviors. There is a nearby health clinic, school, church and community center whose staff, students and congregations now all have access to a safe water source. The community established a water committee and self-help group who assisted the team with the water project whenever possible, supplied any materials they had available and provided meals for the team. Child Fund and Fine Sierra Leone are both working in this area to provide assistance to school children. Before leaving the community, the team provided the water committee with a contact number in case their well were to fall into disrepair, become subject to vandalism or theft.
Using the Traditional Method through Student Led Total Sanitation, the Child Health Club and the teachers addressed the following principle hygiene issues were addressed: Disease Transmission, Germs, Healthy and Unhealthy Communities, Hand Washing-Proper Techniques and Water Saving Methods, Diarrhea Doll- Causes of Diarrhea, Good-Bad Hygiene Behaviors, Disease Transmission Stories, Clean Hands Clean Hearts, Tippy Tap and Keeping the Water Clean. Tippy taps were constructed by community members for individual household use.
The Sierra Leone team had an opportunity to meet with forty-five year old community member and farmer, Hawa Sesay, who stated, "The distance of the old source is so far, and not pure. People defecate in the bush and in the rainy season water used to get to the source where they were getting the water. They are now happy with the new one because it is well protected and easy to access also good to drink."
