Rehabilitation Project
Background Information
Kyakakunguru Primary is a government aided primary school located in Mboira Parish, Kigumba sub-county, Kiryandongo district where The Water Trust has had a number of successful partnerships with the community in the area of water and sanitation. The school has a total enrollment of 800 pupils of which 365 are girls and 435 boys with 13 teachers (2 female and 11 males). With such a huge enrollment, the school has only two 5-stance latrines which puts the pupil stance ration to 1:80. Moreover, it has no direct access to clean water which makes washing hands after latrine use a big challenge. The only water source at the school is a rain water harvesting tank which is preserved for drinking water due to the big numbers at the school. This tank often runs dry leaving the school in critical shortage of water. Mr. Tumusiime Armstrong, the school head teacher, says that the reason he invited The Water Trust to this school for support is because he feared that a sanitation related disease like cholera would easily break out at his school due to the acute shortage of water and latrine stances.
According to the WHO, diseases due to poor water supply, sanitation and personal and domestic hygiene cause 4.0% of all deaths and 5.7% of all disability or ill health in the world. Moreover, waterborne illnesses predominantly affect the poor and the young. When basic water, sanitation and hygiene interventions are applied, waterborne illnesses can be effectively reduced (www.who.int).
The district local government, according to the district water office, is reluctant to invest in borehole drilling projects around this area as many attempts in the area have not yielded results hence causing financial loss to government. “Even after hydrological surveys in the area, many boreholes dry out after a few months making it hard to consider investing over 20 million Uganda shillings for a risky project here as compared to other areas where there is need for water with less risk of getting a dry well” Chandia Joseph, the Kiryandongo District Water Officer, mentioned.
As a way of mitigating the water crisis at the school, the school has committed one day of the week to sanitation related advocacy and general cleaning around the school including latrines is done on a daily basis. Mr. Atugonza Moses, one of the teachers in the school was also assigned the responsibility to head sanitation and hygiene programs. The school also has a vibrant health club which keeps the school clean. The Water Trust (TWT) has identified this school for support to construct a borehole in a bid to improve the school sanitation standard.
Construction Updates
February 9, 2015
Today we visited the school premises to site a suitable location for drilling the borehole. After a meeting between TWT technical staff, Ikon Projects (the drilling company) and school management, we zeroed at on spot where a borehole will be drilled soon.
February 19, 2015
Today the drilling company reported to Kyakakunguru primary school and spent the whole day drilling. By close of day, the drilling team had concluded the exercise at the depth of 59.4m. The well has now been covered as we organize to return for testing.
March 2, 2015
Today we conducted pump testing which was successful.
March 15, 2015
Today we tested the quality of water from this pump as we plan to install the pump tomorrow. Results indicate that the quality is suitable for consumption.
March 16, 2015
Pump installation was done today successfully sending both pupils, teachers and the community around the school to jubilation! We have now tasked the school management to construct a protective fence around the well using local materials in order to protect the pump.
The main objectives of TWT’s Sanitation and Hygiene Program are the use of latrines and observing proper hygiene practices as these goals are inherently connected to the provision of clean water. Open defecation, water storage in unclean containers and the absence of hand washing at critical times are all possible contaminates to the water supply at the household level. Using the immediate gratification of clean water as an impetus, TWT works toward sustainable, interdisciplinary WASH development.
TWT’s social program includes the assignment of one Community Development Officer (CDO) per village. TWT leverages this relationship, by requiring each participating village to achieve Open Defecation Free status (defined by one latrine per household), prior to the pump installation for a shallow hand dug well.
Community Led Total Sanitation
The Water Trust implements the Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) approach with each of our village partners. TWT facilitates a CLTS session in which we aim 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 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.
