One of the projects that John Nj runs from the Nkuru college campus in rural Mityana is the Uwero water project which pipes clean water to families around the community.
The college has ownership of a piece of land that has a natural spring in it. This spring services the water needs of the college, plus nursery and primary schools, cafeteria, hairdressing salon, and accommodation blocks, all of which are on campus.
But there is water left, and so over the past few years John and his students have gradually been laying pipes to take the water to families for whom clean water is not easily available. The families have to make some small contribution to the infrastructure (mainly purchasing the water meter), and they pay for the number of units that they use. But the difference it makes to those families is huge.
An example of this change was seen today when I visited Aysha, mother of 4 young children, who has recently had a water meter and tap installed. Aysha told me that before she had the tap, she had to walk about 30 minutes each way to get a jerrican of water, and that was from a water hole that was also frequented by the cows and the goats. So the water was invariably dirty, and even though she boiled it and strained it, the children were often suffering with water-borne illnesses.
Since she got the tap, the water is so clean that none of the children have been sick at all. Obviously this is great from a health perspective, but in a country with no NHS, there is a big cost-saving implication as well.
Talking of cost, if Aysha wanted to get clean water before, she would have to pay a boda (motorbike) driver to go to the nearest well to buy water from there, and altogether that would work out at 1,000 Uganda shillings per jerrican (about 25p), Now, based on the unit price of the water at her tap, she can fill a jerrycan for 200 shillings – so a massive saving for someone already living in rural poverty.
Aysha also spoke of the benefits of having more time at home as a result of not walking to get water: ‘I have more time to tend to my coffee crop, which means I have a bigger harvest to take to market. And I have more time to do the other chores that are needed, plus time to be with my children. This tap has changed my life in so many ways. I thank God every day for it.’
Some recipients of the piped water (especially the elderly folk) just rejoice in the fact that they don’t have to walk long distances to get water. Others use it to improve irrigation for their cash crops, or to ensure that the chickens are better hydrated resulting in a higher price at market. Families where the girl child had to go and get water now have girls who benefit from more time to do homework, and not having to put themselves in the vulnerable position of collecting water in remote rural areas. Some homes even sell some of their water to neighbours, again at a much reduced cost.
Aysha is one of 76 homes who have received piped water with tap and meter from the college spring. Working on an average of 6 people per home, that is 456 people whose lives have been transformed for the better. Well done John and team!
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