EXTRAVEGA SUPPORTING charity: water
Construction Concludes for a new water well in Uganda. In the first half of 2021, we made a generous donation to charity: water to provide clean water in Uganda. We are thrilled to tell you that construction progress is concluded. Soon, many people will have access to clean and safe drinking water because of our contribution, and we can’t say how happy we are enough.
Our gift was sent to charity: water’s local partner, International Lifeline Fund, in July 2021. charity: water and their partner have been hard at work obtaining construction permits, purchasing supplies, and collaborating with community members. Community engagement is especially important at first stage, as it creates a sense of ownership and pride in the water project.
ABOUT INTERNATIONAL LIFELINE FUND
In the Apac and Kwania Districts of Uganda where International Lifeline Fund (ILF) works, drilling can be complicated due to low groundwater potential and high salinity. ILF brings clean and safe water to communities by pairing their expertise with the best drillers in the region—those capable of reaching fresh water at a depth of at least 30 meters.
ILF starts every project with general water point training and engagement activities to build a community’s sense of ownership. Once construction is complete, every community is given the opportunity to opt into EverFlow Africa—a social enterprise operated by ILF that provides preventative maintenance and rapid-response repairs for a monthly fee. Whether or not communities opt into EverFlow, ILF forms and trains Water User Committees to manage the operations and maintenance of each water point.
Preparation is one of the most important stages of water project implementation. charity: water’s partners in the preparation time assess and choose which communities or schools will receive water points based on factors such as geography, need, community interest, the risk of overlap with other organizations, and the availability of spare parts for future repairs. Once a school or community is selected, water point management trainings begin and construction materials are transported to the site. For ILF specifically, the preparation stage has included working with the local government to select communities, conducting surveys for our monitoring and evaluation framework known as MAP, and hosting community engagement meetings.
CONSTRUCTION CONCLUDES FOR NEW WATER WELL at 12 months from program cycle begins (July 2021 > July 2022)
Our gift—along with donations from charity: water’s global community of supporters—has since been put to work as part of a larger grant that will bring clean and safe water to 22,050 people living in the Apac and Kwania Districts.
PROGRESS TO DATE (July 2022)
charity: water local partner, the International Lifeline Fund (ILF) Uganda has been hard at work. Thanks to an early start date, construction is already complete! As part of charity: water’s grant closure process, they will review completion photos, verify GPS coordinates, and confirm that all reporting data is accurate before preparing our official completion report. For now, we can celebrate that construction has been completed on 9 new boreholes and 40 rehabilitated boreholes in total for the larger grant.
FIELD CONDITIONS
The hydrology of the Apac and Kwania Districts provides a unique opportunity for innovation in the water sector, as 26% of the population lacks access to an improved water source. A belt of dryland (desert or grasslands with limited soil moisture and low rainfall, and higher-than-average rates of poverty) runs through a significant portion of this region. Groundwater is scarce, and while both districts border Lake Kyoga, the salinity renders groundwater undrinkable and difficult to use for subsistence farming. Communities are young, with 50% of the population being under the age of 18.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
In every community they serve, ILF Uganda performs an assessment to determine the most appropriate approach to sanitation and hygiene. To ensure the sustainability of water points, ILF Uganda operates EverFlow, a monthly fee based maintenance and repair service with a goal of maintaining 99% functionality at all times.
In communities where open defecation is a significant problem, ILF Uganda staff members carry out Community- Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) trainings. CLTS is designed to leverage the experience of disgust to trigger lasting behavioral change around open defecation, with the ultimate goal of certifying a community Open Defecation Free.
For communities where open defecation is not a significant barrier to sanitation or hygiene, ILF Uganda implements Participatory Hygiene and Sanitation Transformation training instead. This approach empowers communities to actively participate in discussions related to sanitation and hygiene behavior, giving them the tools and confidence they need to make changes that will improve health outcomes for their families.
