Donor: The Cassel Family

Our Nyakarongo well was completed in early August 2008 and is today providing clean water for this village.

Murchison Falls National Park Game Reserve for as far as the eye can see, that’s the view from any one of the homesteads in Nyakarongo village. Located in the extreme North West of Pakanyi sub county the village is 63km from Masindi town. Access to this picture perfect community is hampered by roads barely inaccessible by a 4×4 but the community’s major cause for complaint is a lack of clean drinking water.

“The water is not good, because there is rubbish there. They (community members) can get diseases, hookworms, amoeba and bilharzias. They can get that”
—Asiimune Pires, commenting at the conditions of Kyamurang open source.

“I have taken this water since primary 1 I am now in primary 7. I don’t enjoy drinking it because it is dirty”
—Jakmonga Silivio

“It causes problems to the stomach, it is dirty they have no time to boil the water. When a child is sick the following day he is absent”
—Omutibo Peter Deputy Headteacher Nyakarongo Primary School.

At lunchtime school children from Nyakarongo Primary School make their way to the Kyamutwai open source, which is one of six in the community. Previous attempts at clean water provision here have failed, witnessed by two dysfunctional wells and a rain water harvesting tank at the school. Though the current open sources offers only unhealthy water, as with the rest of the community the children have no choice. The nearest functioning source is kilometres away in the neighboring village of Kinyangara.

Click Below to View the Nyakarongo Slideshow

Project Status: Nyakarongo’s hilly geography and history of unsuccessful bore hole drilling led Busoga Trust to conduct a more thorough hydrologic evaluation of the area to help with the the location and approach to a well. Busoga Trust is used a system of support rings and timbers given the “collapsible geology” in the region. It was a slower and more costly approach but necessitated by the local geology. Digging ran from early June into Mid July. The well was capped and operational by early August. It is 21 ft deep with a 6 ft water column and a 2 ft per hour recharge rate.

Water Quality Data Before and After Busoga Trust Intervention

Fecal Coliforms (E. coli) per 100 ML

Old Source: 208

BTA Well: 6

Percent Change: -97%

E. coli is a fecal bacteria which causes diarrhea, violent stomach cramps, and fever. It can be transmitted through contaminated food or water. US EPA water standardsrequire Ecoli and similar bacteria be completely absent from 95% of the water samples taken from a system.

Turbidity/NTU

Old Source: 8

BTA Well: 0

Percent Change: -100%

Turbidity is a measure of water clarity; it is an indicator of how much solid mass (silt, sand, clay, algae) and potentially disease-causing organisms a water source contains. Turbidity is measured in Nephelometric Turbidity Units.  In the United States, the allowable standard is 1 NTU; Uganda strives for a turbidity level of less than 15 NTU.

Baseline Survey Data Before and After Busoga Trust Intervention

Providing clean water only goes so far to prevent disease from affecting rural communities.  Proper hygiene and sanitation practices in combination with clean water are essential to improving health. That is why, when Busoga Trust installs a water source in a village, we conduct health sensitizations focusing on changing the behavior and practices employed by the community. Baseline surveys are carried out by Busoga Trust staff preceding and following our interventions to assess impact. Listed are the statistics from Nyakarongo Village.

Open Defecation:  When open defecation is practiced in communities, it poses a tremendous threat to good health. Fecal matter is the primary mode of disease transmission and can also easily infect open water sources. The reduction of open defecation in a community is critical to improve sanitation and hygiene levels.

Pre-Intervention: 55 %

Post-Intervention: 24%

Percent Change: -56.36%

Partial Pit Latrine: The use of a pit latrine is significantly improved location for defecation. Waste is contained in underground pits, preventing it from contaminating public areas.  A partial pit latrine has an incomplete outer structure which is not ideal, but it is a vast improvement on open defecation.

Pre-Intervention: 26%

Post-Intervention: 55%

Percent Change: 111.54%

Complete Pit Latrine- A complete pit latrine is an underground pit for waste storage with walls and a roof for privacy. This is also important for vector control; a complete outer structure helps prevent insects and rodents from getting into the latrine and spreading disease.

Pre-Intervention: 19%

Post-Intervention: 23%

Percent Change: 21.05%

Bath Shelter-  Bath shelters are important for privacy, but they are also vital to the control of mosquitoes, as stagnant water left on the ground creates an environment where these vectors can thrive. A bath shelter with a soak pit helps to eliminate this problem.

Pre-Intervention: 13%

Post-Intervention: 43%

Percent Change: 230.77%

Rubbish Pit- The construction of rubbish pits are important for controlling flies and keeping bacteria off of the ground in the village compound. It is also important that the pit is surrounded by a fence so that children cannot fall in.

Pre-Intervention: 8%

Post-Intervention: 41%

Percent Change: 412.50%

Kitchen- In order to keep smoke out of the home, Busoga Trust encourages people in the village to use a different structure for cooking. This helps to eliminate respiratory and eye problems, particularly in women.

Pre-Intervention: 27%

Post-Intervention: 74%

Percent Change: 174.07%

Drying Rack- People in the village often store clean dishes on the ground, so they are taught that using a drying rack is the best way to keep bacteria and animal feces off of their dishes and out of their food.

Pre-Intervention:15%

Post-Intervention: 63%

Percent Change: 320%