KYABIGONOKO-MUMITI, UGANDA

FUNDED AUGUST 2, 2023

Dirty Water

St. Gerald Nursery and Primary School was the original location for a well to be drilled. But despite the geographical survey that was done, and three attempts at drilling, sufficient water was not found. Sadly, it was determined that the water table is too deep for a well.  We have reallocated the funding to Kyabigonoko–Mumiti, Ruhunga Parrish. in the Buhimba SubCounty and Kibuube District of Uganda.  700 people live here. There are 102 households and one primary school that offers boarding, but no clean water within easy walking distance.  With the proposed borehole well and hand pump, up to 1,500 people will be served daily, greatly encouraging village growth.

CURRENT CONDITIONS

The closest water sources to Kyabigonoka–Mumiti (just Kyabigonoka from here out) are open ponds next to the village. These open ponds are fed from the bush around them, as well as from the fields, so they are contaminated by the animal and human waste that you will find in these areas.

The water is shared with domestic animals like pigs and cows, and wild animals from the bush, including monkeys. The ponds also attract birds, frogs, and snakes. And all of these animals contribute to the water contamination The water is filled with the bacteria strains that cause typhoid, diphtheria, and other intestinal illnesses. The hygiene in the village is very poor as well, since the water is limited, so it is used for drinking and cooking only.

The Pig

As is often the case with these villages, the lack of clean water leads to pervasive illness. Children, the elderly, and pregnant women suffer the most, with elevated death tolls due to dehydration and the physical damage of persistent fevers. Medicine for Typhoid is incredibly expensive; it takes about a day’s wages for a single dose. And that’s before the cost of transportation to the medical clinics. This is money that could be used for tuition, tools, seeds for crops or even food to feed their families. So clean water changes the trajectory of the whole village.

The viIlagers gather water from the pond.

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, and 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 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 to maintenance and small repairs, to keep things running smoothly.

WELL MAINTENANCE & REPAIRS

The funding for future repairs and maintenance is a two-part process. When the village is chosen for a well, the villagers 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 village 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, villagers did 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’s 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.

PROJECT COSTS AND TIMELINE

Total Project Cost: $5,000 – Funding was provided in August for St Geralds School, and is being reallocated for this project. No additional funds are requested.

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. That may cost more, but we will likely match funding from another source.

Estimated Project Start Date:  October, 2023

Estimated Project Completion Date: Within 2-3 months of starting.

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 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 poverty cycle breaks because of the drop in illness rates. Parents are healthy enough to work, and without having to spend money on medicine, they will have enough money to feed
their families, to pay for tuition and schoolbooks, buy better seeds, and build better housing. The churches in town will grow because of the clean water. The school will see an increase
in attendance, and even in boarders as families want to send their children to the place where the miracle of clean water has been found.

The old water sources will still be used for livestock, but the women and children won’t have to risk exposure to either domestic or wild animals just to gather clean water!

Women at the “well”