Water Blogged

St. Augustine Indulusia Primary School in Kenya now has access to clean water, thanks to the completion of their borehole well! Clean flowing water is already making a difference in the lives of the students and staff. This will provide them with a reliable water source for their daily needs. Here is the report provided by our implementing partner, The Water Project.

We installed new latrines and handwashing stations, then trained students and staff on improved sanitation and hygiene practices. Together, these components will unlock the opportunity for these students to thrive!

14-year-old Faith shared what the new well meant to her: “Reliable water will positively impact learning at school. Since we won’t waste time going for water far from the school, more time will be invested in academics, thus improving learning.”

Teachers were just as excited as the students about the new well on campus!

“Initially, we had several cases of snake bites and learners sneaking out of school while enroute the water point that is outside the school compound. And with the distance that is between the school and the stream or spring where our learners used to fetch water, lots of learning time would be wasted thus impacting their academics negatively. With this new water point, we are assured of our pupils’ safety and good academic performance,” shared Mrs. Isabella Musimbi, a teacher at the school.

The first step was to conduct a hydrogeological survey to determine the best site for the school’s well. Once we found the perfect spot, the team obtained approval from the government to begin drilling.

Parents, staff, and students all contributed to this well’s success, right from the start. To prepare for the well, the school collected fine sand and water for cement-making. When everything was ready, our drill team and staff arrived at the school to begin work.

Drilling started with excitement in the air. We continued drilling to reach a final depth of 70 meters with a final static water level of 6 meters.

The drilling process can take up to three consecutive days to complete due to this region’s hard bedrock, so the team set up a camp where they could rest and refuel. The school’s kitchen staff and parents helped provide meals for the team, while the school provided a safe place for the artisans’ accommodations and materials.

Once we reached the optimum depth, the team inserted permanent casing, then bailed out the dirty water at the bottom of the well. The workers installed pipes, flushed them, tested the well’s yield, and chlorinated the water.

We constructed a cement well pad to seal it off from any ground-level contaminants. Tiles were installed beneath the spout to protect the cement from the erosive force of the water. We included a short drainage channel and a soak pit to prevent standing water.

When the well pad was cured, we installed a new stainless steel hand pump and sampled the water for a quality test. The results showed this water was safe for drinking!

We officially gave ownership of the new borehole to the school’s students and teachers.

Students and staff celebrated the presence of clean water on campus. The event was an excellent chance to acknowledge the school administration and students and remind them of our continued support. Happiness, thanksgiving, and appreciation were the order of the day, flowing in all directions.

VIP Latrines
This project funded the installation of six new ventilated improved pit (VIP) latrines. These new latrines have cement floors designed to be easy to use and clean. They have locking doors for safety and privacy, as well as vents to keep air flowing out through the roof. With a well right on school property, there should be enough water to keep them clean.

We also also set up two handwashing stations outside the latrines. Student Health Club members will teach other students how to wash their hands at the stations properly, fill the stations with water, and ensure that there is always soap available.

We scheduled hygiene and sanitation training with the school’s staff. When the training day arrived, facilitators Hosborn Bwana, Daniel Mutuku Mwanzia, and Jemimah Khasoa deployed to the site to lead the event. 22 students and teachers attended the training.

We emphasized personal, menstrual, oral, and environmental hygiene. Proper water handling, soap-making, the ten steps of handwashing, and the importance of primary health care were discussed. We covered disease prevention, teen pregnancy, and child rights. Waterpoint, latrine, and handwashing station operation and maintenance, as well as leadership and governance, were discussed. By the end of the training, each pupil understood their role in sustaining clean water and good health within their school community.

The students elected peers to lead their newly formed student health club. The student health club members will encourage good health and hygiene practices amongst their peers, teachers, and the larger community.

Facilitator Jemimah Khasoa shared how the training went: “The participants’ commitment and enthusiasm were great. They were full of energy, questions, and full participation. They actively answered questions and contributed more positively to the discussions.”

“Menstrual hygiene was the most interesting topic covered. Despite being one that was met with poor response at first, it ended up being the most interesting because lots of myths and misconceptions were addressed and duly rectified. Just to give an example, there are few participants who believed that one should not go into a vegetable plantation when they are menstruating because it would cause the vegetables to wither, but a few participants debunked the myth, saying that they had done it several [times] but never saw their vegetable withering,” Faith shared.

“The training session has reminded me of a profound fact that, though we all are humans under the sun, we are enabled and privileged differently. Thus, we all need to create room for understanding and accommodating others,” she concluded.

Thank you for making all of this possible!

We extend a special thank you to the Westridge Water Warriors in Pasadena, California for supporting this project!