KYABASENGYA EAST, UGANDA

FUNDED JUNE 21, 2023

Kyabasengya East is a village in the Kiryangobe parish, located in the Kitoba s/county, Hoima District of Uganda. There are 190 households in Kyabasengya East, which implies a range of 950 to 1,330 people – 950 by the US estimate of 5 per household, and 1,330 people if using the Ugandan estimate of 7 people per household.

There is no clean water within walking distance of this village. The proposed borehole and hand pump will be able to serve about 1,000 people daily, depending on the lines. This well will not be used for either agriculture or livestock, but many villages plant near the runoff outlet to maximize water use.  

EXISTING CONDITIONS

The nearest water sources for this village are the surface water and streams in the nearby forest, 1.5 km away from the village. This forest is home to chimpanzees and gorillas. Both of these creatures pose a danger to the women and children who go to gather the water. Attacks are common and in the past years, the injuries have sometimes been severe enough to result in the deaths of those attacked. These are some of the last creatures to roam this part of Uganda freely, but they are very aggressive if someone accidentally walks into an area that the troop has claimed at the time. In addition, sharing water with great apes also runs the risk of spreading Ebola during outbreaks. This isn’t currently a concern in this area, but the village heads know of the dangers. It is a worry that they share when asked.

CEED has been drilling in Uganda for nearly 20 years. The first well was drilled using the percussion method. One of our donors saw the process and donated 2 mobile drills for our use. We now also have a big rig for use in areas where we encounter rock layers or other obstacles that the smaller drills cannot overcome. The team is Ugandan staffed and led through the efforts of Herbert Asiimwe, the Director of CEED Uganda. Herbert has been leading these drilling teams for over 15 years and most of our drillers have over a decade of experience each.

Herbert is also a licensed CPA. The bookkeeping is kept to the highest standards and oversight is done in the US office by both Kate and the CEED board. They are our exclusive drilling team in Uganda. Each well is funded individually and [the money] goes directly to the cost of running the drill and salaries for the teams on the ground. After all the workman is worth their wages, and one of CEED’s goals has
always been to ensure that those working for us can support their families through the work they do. We also make sure that we are running our equipment responsibly. A part of each well’s cost goes directly into maintenance and small repairs to keep things running smoothly.

WELL MAINTENANCE AND REPAIRS

The funding for future repairs and maintenance is a two-part process. When a village or school is chosen for a well, they sign a contract stating that they will do their best to set aside a few pennies per month to help cover the cost of future repairs. They can do this by selling surplus water to local farmers, or by having a collection.

This method acts as a guarantee that the school, village, etc. will take ownership of the well. When something is wrong, they have the responsibility to reach out and let us know so the wells can be repaired in a timely manner. This process works and it grew out of many years of experience in Uganda. Without this process the village does not take full ownership of the well and before we implemented it we found that wells would break from small fixable issues, but they wouldn’t contact us because it “wasn’t their well.”  A designated water committee and the water fund solved this issue.

FAITH AND DISCIPLESHIP

We always use our drilling opportunities as a disciple making outreach. We try to dig our wells near churches or schools, if possible. We also use the drilling itself as an outreach. One of our donors many years ago donated a solar powered projection system. During the day people come from miles around to watch the drilling while it is happening. While that is going on, the projection system is being charged. Then at night we set up the projector and play “The Jesus Film” – a film about Jesus’ life, ministry, death and resurrection in the local dialect of the area where the well is being drilled. Then when the well is completed, we add a plaque with the donor’s names and
usually a verse telling the village why the water was gifted to them. The dedications are done by the local ministers of the church, turning even that event into a praise meeting. And this well will be located near a church. People who may not have visited the church otherwise will do so just for the blessing of clean water. There they will hear the gospel, so clean water will bring them in touch with the living water Himself.

PROJECT-SPECIFIC COSTS AND FUNDING INFORMATION

Total Project Cost:  $5,000

• Materials:  $3900
• Labor:  $650
• Administration:  $450

Future Maintenance:  The villagers collect a penny or two a month from each household to keep for maintenance. This system ensures that the well is fully adopted by the village and cared for.

Potential Other Costs: If we were to hit rock the well would need to be drilled by the big rig, though it is unlikely to be an issue in this area.

Describe Other Funding Sources:  Each project is directly funded. We only bring in outside funding sources in case of a dry well or a larger project that we know going in will require more heavy-duty equipment. This well will require neither as we know the water table in the area is good.

Amount of Funding Requested:  $5,000

Date Funding is Required:  As soon as possible

Estimated project start date:  Within 2-3 weeks of funding

Estimated project completion date:  Within 2-3 months of funding

FUTURE IMPACT

In 2020 CEED took the opportunity to do a survey of 20 villages that have access to one of our wells. On average each village experienced a 70% reduction in illness across the board. Typhoid, Cholera, parasites, and waterborne illnesses dropped significantly. We do
understand that there are, of course, other factors that play a part in community health, but it all must start with access to clean water.

We also expect that with a clean water source, women and children will avoid the dangers of the forest, so there won’t be a conflict with the local wildlife. The well will likely also be built close to the village church, or if the ground there isn’t suitable, the church will likely relocate closer to the water. This means that in the local way of thinking that church is blessed with water, and the locals will want to go to that church to share in the blessing. It then becomes an outreach that meets spiritual needs as well as the physical need of clean water.

The impact of clean water also has a ripple effect on the community. Parents currently spend much of their income on medical treatment for waterborne illnesses, and occasionally animal bites and other injuries. When the well is drilled and the village can safely access clean water, the villagers will be able to use their income for other things, like more seeds for crops, bricks for new buildings and even new plots of land to grow food on. One well truly does change everything for a village.