KWAHO - Kenya Water for Health Organisation

Villagers work together to address water and sanitation problems in Western Kenya

By George Yap, Program Director

Original location: http://www.watercan.com/pdf/WaterDropsSummer05.pdf

Straddling the equator, Kenya possesses an incredibly diverse geography ranging from the depths of the Great African Rift Valley to the snow-covered peaks of Mount Kenya. Kenya is also a very poor country. More than half of the population earns less than US$ 2 per day, and basic social services such as education and health care are sparse, particularly in rural areas. As a consequence, Kenya’s child mortality rate is more than seventeen times higher than Canada’s.

South Gems is an isolated rural area in Siaya District, located approximately 350 kilometers east of Nairobi, Kenya’s national capital. The majority of South Gems’ residents collect water from unsafe sources of water drawn from seasonal streams, and unprotected natural springs. The only year-round river in the area is 6 kilometers away. During the dry season, water collectors – usually women and children – can spend as much as two hours fetching a single container of water. This tedious yet vital daily chore takes time and energy away from efforts to pursue more productive activities such as child care, attending school, and farming. During the rainy season, it is common for people to use water from dirty pools that collect on the ground.
The poor water situation in South Gems is made worse by the general lack of sanitation facilities and basic information on good hygiene practices. Less than one-third of households have access to any kind of sanitation facility. Water and sanitation related diseases afflict many people here, especially children.

In 2003, WaterCan started working with a local non-governmental organization called Kenya Water and Health Organization (KWAHO) to help improve the quality of life of villagers living in Siaya District through the development of safe water supplies, basic sanitation facilities, and the carrying out of hygiene education. Water systems planned include the drilling of borehole wells fitted with hand pumps and large rainwater collection tanks.

We visited Uthanya Public School (261 students, 7 teachers) where a 40,000-litre ferrocement rainwater tank and toilet blocks were under construction. The school’s Headmaster explained that with the Kenyan government’s recent decision to provide all children with free primary education many schools have seen dramatic increases in enrollment. Unfortunately, the lack of adequate toilet facilities forces many students to relieve themselves in the surrounding fields. At each water-point site, community members and school officials are organized to form a Water Management Committee. These committees are responsible for the routine operation and maintenance of the constructed water systems, and to support sanitation and hygiene education outreach activities in their communities. The committees responsible for the borehole wells will also be responsible for setting up water user fee collection systems to help pay for spare parts and meet other on-going operation and maintenance needs.

We visited the homes of several villagers who proudly showed us their clean compounds that included hand-washing facilities and dish-racks – the result of their exposure to hygiene education workshops. Under the shade of a large tree, we spoke with an energetic women’s group called Osiepe (“friends” in the local language) which has 30 members. Mrs. Odinga, the group’s Chairperson, explained how members help to promote hygiene education activities in their communities through songs, dramas, and ensuring that their own household compounds are always clean. At one women's home, we enjoyed a delicious meal of chicken and posho a bread-like food made from maize flour. As we got up to leave, we were presented with an unexpected gift of bananas in a quantity that could have easily fed us for weeks!

Through WaterCan’s partnership with KWAHO, more than 3,000 villagers in South Gems will eventually gain improved access to safe and sustainable water supplies. Moreover, the construction and use of basic sanitation facilities will help to improve local environmental sanitation conditions, and community members, including students and teachers at local schools, will adopt improved hygiene and sanitation practices thereby reducing their vulnerability to related diseases.