MAMBONDIANI VILLAGE, ZIMBABWE
COMPLETE
STATUS
people impacted
dollars funded
FUNDED JUNE 15, 2022
Mambondiani Village is located in Dora, in the Eastern Region of Zimbabwe. It has a population of 250 people. Mambondiani also serves as a Farming God’s Way training center. Approximately 100 additional people are hosted here throughout the year, to receive FGW training.
Drought has gone on here for 3 years. The current water situation is extremely bad. The farmers have a problem even to have a drink of water. This is a poor village and there is no drilled borehole. The people fetch water from shallow hand dug wells. It is a drought and right now the dry season. As the water level goes down, the people will begin to dig down deeper into the sandy shallow wells 1-3 km from the village.
Others use this water, too. The women and kids are sent to collect water, and they spend a long time fetching water. The children struggle to make it to the school, which is 5 km away. There is one private borehole a few km away, and people come from surrounding areas and some from this village if they want clean water. The owner of this private borehole allows people to come and take the water, but only for a limited window of time per day, so there is always a line, and sometime pandemonium. Some villagers go there, but most fetch the closer water. The common water-related diseases they suffer are bilharzia (schistosomiasis), diarrhea, and worms.
This well project is the first that we (Heaven’s Family) are doing with our ministry partner, Oni Joshua Lawrence. We have been working with Oni since 2015, with our sister ministry Farming God’s Way in Zimbabwe. We do not do projects unless we have formed an ongoing partnership with a good track record of accountability with any ministry partner who is involved in any Safe Water Ministry project.
Our ministry partners do Farming God’s Way training here, a food growing ministry that includes biblically based discipleship training. The training has been introduced here. The farmers use the farming techniques. Disciple-making is happening, too. There is fruit. People now work together, they help each other. The FGW discipleship groups are called ‘God’s Love Groups’.
Providing a deep well would bring huge relief to the people who have been suffering with no water. They need clean water in general, but this is also an emergency situation. The last time it rained this year was the beginning of April, it hasn’t rained since and now it’s dry season. The people would have water for drinking, cooking, bathing. They would have better health. The kids would be able to spend less time fetching water and could focus on school. The FGW training site would have water available to those who come to train and water available for irrigation of the FGW training plots. The local farmers would also have water available for irrigation for their nutritional gardens *as long as there was enough water to serve human drinking first. What an amazing blessing it would be for the community to show them how precious they are and how God loves them bringing clean water and relief from years of drought!
PROGRESS REPORT SEPTEMBER 27, 2022
The well at Mambondiani, Zimbabwe has been successfully drilled! There is yet to be an official opening ceremony (I believe next Saturday, Oct 10th), more photos to be sent of people using the well for one more completion update. Thank you!
This is a well project with solar panels.
Well Depth: 60 meters
Water Yield: 4000m3/hr
Our partner, Oni, reports, “Praise the Lord the Mambondiani borehole is now up and running. Thank you so much for all you have done for the people of Mambondiani to have clean and safe water. The people asked through me to convey their gratitude. This is the first of its kind in their villages. Unfortunately most people were also at a funeral and couldn’t participate in the completion of their borehole. A few who were there jostled to take the first drink and take some water home. They said they don’t know how they can thank you, they have nothing to offer but to say, ” May the Lord bless you abundantly.”
Oni writes, “Thank you, Ingomar Living Waters, for providing clean water services. This will improve the healthy status and nutrition of our communities. Mutare is the eastern region of Zimbabwe, and Dora is one of the most water scarce regions in our nation.
Increasing water scarcity across the regions lowers the water levels in traditional wells, forcing people to travel long distances to collect limited quantities of water. Once again thank you, for this great incentive of providing safe water, solar powered borehole; it will go a long way in alleviating sickness, hunger and stress. Thank for putting smiles on our faces. We are finally accessing water from the tap – so amazing! Once again, thank you for your great gift.”
This video is drilling to water strike. It’s almost 3 minutes long, but the ending is worth the wait! Hallelujah!
COMPLETED OCTOBER 31, 2022
The new well is officially open! Many adults and children attended, as well as the chief of the village. People were taught a lesson from the Word of God, and had a celebratory meal of soft drinks and cookies for the event. The village is so very grateful for this amazing life-saving blessing of clean water.
Also, the community came together and managed to raise funds to buy a solar floodlight, to provide security lighting for the well at night. This is additional to the committee who are assigned to care for the well. The community are really loving and owning their new clean water resource. May the Lord bless you once again!
Testimony translated from video on left:
My name is Tinotenda Matimba. I would like to thank you for the help that you gave us by giving us clean water. I used to walk for some KILOMETERS to look for water, but now I can just walk for a few METERS to the clean water source. We used to bath our bodies with only two litres of water, but we now have enough water to bath our bodies. I want to thank you.
Testimony translated from video on right, ‘mama from the village’:
Excuse me and Greetings to you. To me this borehole is a blessing from God. I used to go to a far place called Roma to look for water. For me I couldn’t walk that long distance because I have a problem with my backbone. So everyday I used to pay someone to go and fetch water for me. I thank you and God for providing us with clean water, it’s close and I can now fetch water by myself. God bless you.
Video Testimony: 14 year old girl (below) reads a prepared thank you letter.
I am a girl aged 14 years. I live here in Mambondiani. I am taking this time and opportunity to give thanks to Ingomar Living Waters and Heaven’s Family for the help they are giving to our village. For now villagers are really appreciating […] The things you did for us. On behalf of the village, I want to say thank you very much for drilling us a borehole. […] Water is life. We were suffering water challenges then God saw our suffering. He then sent you, Ingomar Living Waters & Heaven’s Family. […] to find you & prosper you in your plans of saving us from water problems. For now we are able to practice different projects because of water in our village. All of all, I want to say may God the Almighty bless you, the two of you, and also bless […] and keep on opening doors… for the Bible says […] To you I say many blessings are waiting for you. May God bless you and give you everlasting [life]. Thank you.
All projects are made possible by World Changers.