RUSEKERE VILLAGE, UGANDA

FUNDED JUNE 28, 2023

Rusekere Village is located in the Kabamba Sub-county, Kagadi District of Uganda. There are 158 households in Rusekere, so the population estimate ranges from 790 people, using America’s 4 per household estimate, to 1106 using the Ugandan 7 per household estimate. By either estimate, the entire village can be served by the proposed borehole well and hand pump.  It is not intended to use the water for livestock and agriculture.

EXISTING CONDITIONS

There is no source of clean water within walking distance.  The only source of water for this village currently is an open pond fed by runoff from the surrounding area. During the dry season, this pond dries up almost entirely, so the villagers have to spend money to purchase water bottles from the trading center just for a drink or find some remnants of groundwater somewhere.

During the rainy season, the ponds in Uganda are used by everything from livestock to frogs looking for a place to lay their eggs. And where there are frogs, there are snakes.  Also, the pond is fed by runoff from the fields, so contaminants like fecal matter end up in the place where they get their water to drink. This results in diarrhea, cholera, and typhoid.

Villagers will often tell you that everyone in their family has had a case of typhoid at least once in a year, and oftentimes they will have the illness as frequently as every other month. This is particularly dangerous to the elderly, the young, and pregnant and nursing mothers. And the economic impact of a village is staggering, as nearly all money not needed for seed for crops or food ends up being used for medical treatment. And sometimes families forgo even the necessities to treat these waterborne illnesses.

These ponds also pose a drowning risk. The ponds are deep, and the wood can become slippery. Children fall in and either can’t get themselves back out, or they hit their heads and drown. Every village with this type of water source has at least one story of a child dying this way.

The pond is deep enough to drown a child who falls in.

CEED’S EXPERIENCE

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 [so] 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 [funding] 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. The funding for future repairs and maintenance is a two-part process. When the village, or school in this case, 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.”  The committee and the water fund solved this issue.

CHRISTIAN 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 drilling 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.

The pond is deep and the logs can be slippery.

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 water-born 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.

The impact of clean water also has a ripple effect on the community. Parents currently spend much of their income on medical treatment for water-born 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.

PROJECT COSTS AND TIMELINE

Total Project Cost: $5,000

Cost break out:

• Materials:          $3,900
• Labor:                    $650
• Administrative:  $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.

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

Funding for Other Costs:  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.

Funding Requested from ILW:  $5000

Date Funding Required:  As soon as possible

Estimated Project Start Date:  Within 2-3 weeks of funding date

Estimated Project Completion Date: Within 2-3 months of funding date

Children gather water from the pond.