Rehabilitation Project
The community of Kisindizi is situated among small hills and valleys in a rural area of Masindi district,
Uganda. It is noted for having been the location of a fort prior to 1890 of either King Kabalega of the Bunyoro Kingdom or the British explorer Samuel Baker. There are no remains of the fort and the site
has likely been incorporated into a farmer’s field. Almost all the land in Kisindizi is used for small scale agriculture. Residents primarily grow maize which they often grind down into flour and make a grits-like food called ‘posho’. Other than farming there is very little economic activity in Kisindizi. There is a government run primary school, but that’s as far as government services go. As is typical of rural
communities in Uganda, Kisindizi lacks any modern infrastructure. There is no power supply, the few dirt roads are lumpy and potholed, and there is limited safe water supply.
Local residents who do not live close to a protected water source must access water where it’s available
and that often means collecting it from open pools which form naturally in the areas many valleys. The problem with collecting water from these pools is that animals often use them as a source of water as
well. As animals tread into the pools to drink they bring fecal matter and other contaminants with them. The result is that the water becomes a source of disease transmission and a health threat to the community. Without a protected, clean source of water the residents of Kisindizi will chronically suffer water born diseases.
On January 17, 2011 our partner, Busoga Trust, began work on a shallow hand dug well in Kisindizi. The community fully participates during the construction and has an active hand throughout the entire process. Once complete, the water source will be the responsibility of the community to maintain and use for decades.
