Project Status



Project Type:  Protected Spring

Regional Program: Western Uganda WaSH Program

Impact: 160 Served

Project Phase:  In Service - Mar 2018

Functionality Status:  Functional

Last Checkup: 03/07/2024

Project Features


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Community Profile

Most of Ejinga Community is awake by 6am to do their usual chores. Since the majority of community members are farmers, they go to their gardens to cultivate their tobacco and maize, which are the main cash crops in this area. The tobacco is usually sold to British American Tobacco Company (BAT) located in Hoima District. Some of the maize is eaten and the rest sold so as to get money for other things.

They work on their farms up to the high sun of midday, when it gets too hot. Then the men go to the trading center where they carry out other side jobs like repairing bicycles and selling wares. The women remain at home to care for their children and prepare meals.

However, transporting the food products to the market in Hoima is challenging because of the poor road network. Besides, the level of poverty in this community is very high - to the extent that some families even fail to buy food they need.

Water

These 160 people rely on a nearby water source, an unprotected spring. At first look, the spring appears to be a murky puddle - but after a closer look, there really is a spring eye that keeps the water coming.

This water sits open in lush area, subjected to a myriad of different contaminants. Animals sate their thirst, children play and bathe at the spring, and rainwater washes things like feces and fertilizers into the water.

Containers are dunked directly into the water until full, and stored in clay pots back home. After drinking, there are cases of stomach pain and diarrhea (indicative of typhoid). The nearest health facility from Ejinga is Kasenene Health Facility, which is about five kilometers away. People are laden with illness, waste time and money to get treated, only to return to the source of their troubles. What other option is there?

Sanitation

Less than a quarter of households have a pit latrine - while the few we visited didn't even have roofs to keep rain out of the pit. Because of these poor conditions, many locals prefer relieving themselves elsewhere. This waste endangers the entire community as it is spread by animals, flies, and rainwater. Some of this can even wash back down into the unprotected spring!

Everyone seems very relaxed when it comes to matters of personal and environmental hygiene. They need to be enlightened of how this negatively impacts their health, and then encouraged to adopt healthier practices.

Here’s what we’re going to do about it:

Training

Training’s main objectives are the use of latrines and observing proper hygiene practices, since these goals are inherently connected to the provision of clean water. Open defecation, water storage in unclean containers and the absence of hand-washing are all possible contaminants of a household water supply. Each participating village must achieve Open Defecation Free status (defined by one latrine per household), prior to the project installation.

This social program includes the assignment of one Community Development Officer (CDO) to each village. The CDO encourages each household to build an ideal homestead that includes: a latrine, hand-washing facility, a separate structure for animals, rubbish pit and drying rack for dishes.

We also implement the Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) approach with each of our village partners. This aims to improve the sanitation and hygiene practices and behaviors of a village. During these sessions, village leaders naturally emerge and push the community to realize that current practices of individual households – particularly the practice of open defecation– are not only unhealthy, but affect the entire village. CLTS facilitates a process in which community members realize the negative consequences of their current water, sanitation and hygiene behaviors and are inspired to take action. Group interactions are frequent motivators for individual households to: build latrines, use the latrines and demand that other households do the same.

Spring Protection

Over continued visits to the community, the viability of a hand-dug well diminished. We just couldn’t find a good construction site for a well that would yield safe, clean water. The terrain here is very hilly; a great place for flowing springs but a difficult place to dig a well.

Considering the convenience, reliability, and long history of this spring, the community has decided to unite with us to build a spring protection system for their current source. Once construction is completed, the spring will begin yielding clean drinking water.

There’s a lot of work to be done: Community members will have to help our team clear the land around the spring, diverge the water, build a catchment area with walls allowing for discharge pipes and steps in and out, and dig drainage. Local families will host our spring protection artisans while they begin the sanitation improvements needed for a successful partnership. We all look forward to making these improvements together!


This project is a part of our shared program with The Water Trust. Our team is pleased to provide the reports for this project (formatted and edited for readability) thanks to the hard work of our friends in Uganda.

Project Updates


December, 2018: A Year Later: Ejinga-Ayikoru Community

A year ago, your generous donation enabled us to protect a spring for Ejinga-Ayikoru Community in Uganda. The contributions of incredible monthly donors and others giving directly to The Water Promise allow our local teams to visit project sites throughout the year, strengthening relationships with communities and evaluating the water project over time. These consistent visits allow us to learn vital lessons and hear amazing stories. Read more...




August, 2018: Ejinga-Ayikoru Community Project Complete

Ejinga-Ayikoru Community in Uganda has a new source of safe, clean water thanks to your donation. A spring has been protected from contamination, and now clean water is flowing. Community members have also received training in sanitation and hygiene, and plan to share what they learned with their families and neighbors.

We apologize for the delay in receiving this wonderful news from us. We have made improvements to our system to ensure that you always hear about your project as soon as possible!

New Knowledge

We trained the newly-formed water sanitation committees (WSC) at the trading center between Abangi and Ejinga for three full days. This was a great location to bring two different communities together to learn about their new water points.

There are 10 members in each committee including chairmen, village health trainers, local council chairs, and opinion leaders. Everyone was respectful and participated well in each activity.

Training taught committee members about their different roles. There is a WSC chairman, vice chairman, secretary, treasurer, two caretakers, and a mobilizer.

Since many locals are illiterate, our training facilitator used simple language and many pictures. Participants also formed small groups to discuss the pictures and what practices they illustrated.

Training raised awareness on keeping water clean, routes of contamination, hand-washing, hygiene practices, and gender. Lessons also equipped the WSC with the right knowledge to do their job well, including managing finances and keeping records. They are now able to be effective ambassadors of good hygiene, sanitation, and health in their neighborhoods. They even have a community plan to carry out everything they learned.

Spring Protection

The community was so helpful once our artisans arrived; they provided food, rooms to stay in, and volunteered their time to work alongside them. Lots of women and children searched for small stones that the artisans could use along the sides of the catchment area. With their great efforts, clean water was flowing from the spring in no time.

The area is first cleared and leveled out, and we excavate back from the spring eye. Ballast is then mixed with cement and sand to make concrete. A wire mesh is lain on the excavated space before the concrete is added in order to create a strong foundation. This foundation is left to cure overnight.

Next, the walls are raised with brick. The artisan then installs a pipe low in the collection wall to direct water from the reservoir to a concrete or plastic spring box. He then backfills the spring source with hardcore until water is flowing from the discharge pipe. The area around the spring is then landscaped, fenced, and drainage is dug.

As soon as clean water was flowing from the discharge pipe, community members were lining up to fill their containers. Mr. Samson Odara said, "I am just very excited for this water source! I can now wait and relax, and drink clean water at home."




August, 2017: Ejinga-Ayikoru Community Project Underway

Ejinga-Ayikoru Community in Uganda will soon have a source of clean water, thanks to your generous donation. A spring is being protected, and the community will attend sessions on sanitation and hygiene practices. Together, these resources will go a long way toward stopping the spread of disease in the area. We just posted a report including information about the community, project details, and pictures. Please look there to read about how the community decided a spring protection system is the best solution for their area. We’ll keep you informed as the work continues!

Click the tabs above to learn more, and Thank You for your help!




Project Photos


Project Type

Springs are water sources that come from deep underground, where the water is filtered through natural layers until it is clean enough to drink. Once the water pushes through the surface of the Earth, however, outside elements like waste and runoff can contaminate the water quickly. We protect spring sources from contamination with a simple waterproof cement structure surrounding layers of clay, stone, and soil. This construction channels the spring’s water through a discharge pipe, making water collection easier, faster, and cleaner. Each spring protection also includes a chlorine dispenser at the waterpoint so community members can be assured that the water they are drinking is entirely safe. Learn more here!


A Year Later: Ejinga-Ayikoru Community

December, 2018

The dirty water that Alfred Sande used to clean his school uniform used to stain his fabric. Now that he uses clean water to wash his clothes, and for drinking, he goes to school healthy and in a neat uniform every day!

Keeping The Water Promise

There's an incredible community of monthly donors who have come alongside you in supporting clean water in Ejinga-Ayikoru Community.

This giving community supports ongoing sustainability programs that help Ejinga-Ayikoru Community 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!

A year ago, your generous donation enabled us to protect a spring for Ejinga-Ayikoru Community in Uganda. The contributions of incredible monthly donors and others giving directly to The Water Promise allow our local teams to visit project sites throughout the year, strengthening relationships with communities and evaluating the water project over time. These consistent visits allow us to learn vital lessons and hear amazing stories – and we’re excited to share this one from local team member Steven Kwikiriza with you.


The community is happy because clean water is available nearby.

People here used to walk long distances to fetch water, but now water is near their homes, Stephen Afidra told us. This means they can access it any time of the day. Stephen also added that since they now have clean water, water-related diseases have declined. Their children now attend school without anything disturbing them.

The sanitation situation has improved significantly too. Our teams conducted a survey at the start of the project which indicted that 32% of households had sanitation facilities. However, this has now increased to 80% because the community has adapted to the ongoing hygiene and sanitation training.

"We have been taught how to look after our families through construction of sanitary facilities and proper storage of drinking water," one woman told us.

Protection of the spring is only one step along the journey toward sustainable access to clean water. The Water Project is committed to consistent monitoring of each water source. Our monitoring and evaluation program, made possible by donors like you, allows us to maintain our relationships with communities by visiting up to 4 times each year to ensure that the water points are safe and reliable.

This is just one of the many ways that we monitor projects and communicate with you. Additionally, you can always check the functionality status and our project map to see how all of our water points are performing, based on our consistent monitoring data.

One project is just a drop in the bucket towards ending the global water crisis, but the ripple effects of this project are truly astounding. This project in Ejinga-Ayikoru Community is changing many lives.

Another example of positive change is in the life of 16-year-old Alfred Sande. He told us  that before the spring protection, he used to wash his school uniform with dirty water that stained the fabric. He is now is happy because he uses clean water to wash his clothes and they stay clean.

This is only possible because of the web of support and trust built between The Water Project, our local teams, the community, and you. We are excited to stay in touch with this community and support their journey with safe water.

Read more about The Water Promise and how you can help.


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 Ejinga-Ayikoru Community 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 Ejinga-Ayikoru Community – 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.