The community of Nyakabale is home to 360 households which are spread out along a shallow valley in Kiryandongo district, Uganda. The land in Nyakabale is very fertile and the great majority of residents are farmers who spend their days tending to their crops. Many people grow tobacco as a cash crop and harvest maize, beans and cassava root to feed their families. Nyakabale also hosts a large trading center where locals can buy all sorts of items ranging from cooking oil to beauty products. The small store fronts are where people tend to gather to chat, debate or simply pass the time.
Although the trading center may have a wide selection of modern amenities, Nyakabale unfortunately lacks many of life’s basic necessities. There is no health center, no school, no electricity and no clean water. People must walk great distances to reach any of those services. Due to the limited access to
clean water, residents resort to collecting water from small, open pools which they often must share with animals. The water in these pools easily becomes contaminated because they are unprotected and it poses a great health risk to the population. Diarrheal diseases, such as typhoid, giardia and dysentery are often contracted and can prove fatal to young children. These and countless other diseases can be prevented simply through the provision of clean water.
Busoga Trust, our implementing partner, will be working with the people of Nyakabale to construct a shallow hand dug well and provide a safe source of water for hundreds of people.
In the video below, a woman from Nyakabale fills her jerry cans for the day. In a little over a month from now, this scene will be a thing of the past. No more long walks. No more dirty water. Life is about to change for this family and many others.