Community water-2016b

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Winter Report 2016

including September-November trip

Water shortage was a real challenge throughout this trip. It’s now the dry season, the land is brown and parched, rivers have dried up, and community water lines heavily rationed. So if a borehole pump breaks down, hundreds of people are affected and forced to walk miles, queue for hours at congested pumps—often resented by local villagers who can’t get to their own supply—and carry heavy water loads on their heads back home. Then they turn around and do it all again. Hence, repairing broken borehole pumps is high on our agenda.

This trip we repaired seven borehole pumps, bringing clean, safe, local water back to over 10,000 people, including 2 schools.

Boreholes repaired this trip:

Bwanali Village

Chitawotawo School

Makhonja Village

Michesi Primary School

Mukaro Village

Phodogoma 1 & 2

Bwanali Village Borehole repaired

COMMUNITY SUPPORT….. WATER

Bwanali Borehole pump - before repair

But we went a step further—or perhaps some might say, “back”—and dug wells to see if that would help in remote areas where there’s no close water source.

Our first—in Msikita Village—was finished just as we left, and it was wonderful to see plenty of water being drawn out of the brick-lined well, even in the dry season, and eagerly drunk by thirsty children.

Msikita Village

From nothing, the heart of this village has been transformed by the Community Centre we built last year, the well, and now the first stages of reforestation in a tree nursery.

Multi projects combining to empower the whole community

(Left): proposed site of the next well— Bwanali, a large, remote, rural village spread over miles, with huge

distances between water sources. We’ve given out

milk/phala here for years, and repaired both of the

boreholes at different times, but 199 extra families

will benefit from the well.

However, after the well was dug, the rains destroyed

the wall structure so it had to be abandoned temporarily

until the weather was more favourable. (Right)

Our thanks to Wilmslow Wells for working in partnership with us, funding these water-based projects

Borehole Repair

Phodogoma 1

back in use!

Mukaro being repaired

WELLS ……

New water sources for desperate areas

Alongside the well, we’re establishing a tree nursery, so some of this precious new water resource could be used to irrigate trees planted out around the area for food, compost and fuel.