Rehabilitation Project
Upon completion of the project, our partner in the field reports...
Community Details
When the Living Water Uganda team arrived in Akayania Village, located in Kenshunga WASH Program Area (WPA), 37 families, a health clinic, local church and community center were desperate for safe drinking water. Families had been reduced to utilizing one unprotected dug well to support all of their water needs. Unsafe hygiene and sanitation practices also disabled the community, as diarrhea and severe dehydration were static and other illnesses including dysentery, typhoid and malaria had further crippled overall community health. The team was pleased to learn of the community’s access to shared communal facilities, pit latrines, pit latrines with slabs and a VIP pit latrine, as the sole use of these facilities coupled with safe drinking water and supported Hygiene Promotion, will help reduce the spread of disease in the area. There are community health workers in the community who also worked with the Living Water team to support the sole use of these facilities and the practice of good hygiene behaviors - which were further addressed by the Living Water team during Hygiene Promotion.
During the well construction, the community established a 10-person (5 men and 5 women) Water Committee who assisted the team with the project when possible and supplied any materials they had available. The Water Committee is responsible for management and maintenance of the improved water point, and is working through participation in planning and contribution of an Operation and Maintenance (O&M) fund. This group was established to take care of day to day management of O&M, to set tariffs with water users and administration of the water point. The committee will also collect 1,000 Ugandan Shillings, equivalent to $0.40 USD, monthly to help support future repair and maintenance needs. Living Water Uganda will continue to provide technical support for the Water Committee to help empower them to carry out management of the water point. Training in community mobilization and action planning was conducted, and will continue to be supported for the next two years by Nyabushozi Community Engagement Co-coordinator and was attended by 37 people (17 men and 15 women). The goal is to equip the Water Committee with the skills necessary to manage the O&M, community relationships and to continue to influence monetary monthly contributions from the community. Kiruhura District local government is currently being engaged by Living Water Uganda to provide technical back up and financial support to the sub-county to monitor operations of the Water Committees in their constituency. They will also be responsible for planning and co- financing training of Hand Pump Mechanics (HPMs), plumbers and mansion. They will in close collaboration with the Living Water Uganda conduct periodic water quality analysis to monitor the physical, chemical and bacteriological characteristic of the water sample. This is important because fluctuation in water quality is detrimental to community financing of water source caretaker that has been identified for this source. The water source caretaker is responsible for day-to-day management and administration of water point. Specifically, the caretaker will carry out the following roles:
• Organize community for orderly use
• Maintain accurate list of water users
• Clean the surrounding of the facilities
• Undertake minor repairs
• Collect O&M fees
The Water Committee will train the water source caretaker in preventive maintenance as well as empower him to check against vandalism.
Hygiene Promotion
The Living Water Hygiene Promotion team conducted baseline feedback meeting in this community. Hygiene Promotion meetings were attended by 26 people, including 16 men and 10 women. The meetings were aimed at disseminating baseline findings, health risks and implications as well as hygiene promotion strategies designed by Living Water Uganda to mitigate problems. A transect survey was jointly conducted by the Living Water Uganda Hygiene Promotion team and the Sub-County Health Inspector to monitor progress in hygiene and sanitation improvement following the launch of the WASH program intervention. The survey showed progress in hygiene and sanitation behaviors. New sanitation facilities had been established. UMOJA- integrated hygiene and sanitation approach that incorporates Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) and Participatory Hygiene and Sanitation Transformation (PHAST) will be employed to trigger this community to take collective actions to improve their hygiene and sanitation. During their stay in the community, the team also constructed tippy taps for single household use and a pit latrine, also intended for single household use.
Community Member Interview
"For the past six years, as a practicing nurse in this community, I have been treating many community members for sanitation and water related diseases – mainly typhoid, dysentery and diarrhea," shared 28-year-old community member and nurse, Esther. "This I largely attribute to unsafe water sources. The worst still, these insecure sourced often dry up completely during the dry season and community members walk over two kilometers searching for water. We thank you for this new well. This will go a long way in reducing the disease prevalence among the people in this community!"
