Water Supply Project For The Vulnerable Community In Yumbe District, Uganda

THE WATER CRISIS

 The water crisis is massive, and clean water plays a crucial role in combating poverty. But it is possible to help a rural community desperately in need by sponsoring a water supply.

Contaminated Water Source

School Children Walking Long Distance Searching For Water.

Broken Community Borehole Lacking Fund To Be Fixed.
Yumbe District, Uganda 

SUMMARY

Without maintenance funds, perfectly good water wells fall into disrepair, and rural Ugandan women and children are forced to again walk miles to collect often contaminated surface water. Refurbishing these wells, often simply by replacing broken pump hardware, profoundly changes the villagers' lives by giving them the basic human right of safe, clean water. People's health improves immediately when they stop using contaminated water sources. Please support safe, clean water for the people.

CHALLENGE 

Water wells that tap deep aquifers are a lifesaver for rural villagers in developing countries because the alternative is to collect domestic water supplies from essentially mud puddles often shared with animals. In many instances, perfectly functional wells were built, but over time they fell into disrepair. Without a maintenance fund, and without Water User Committees to manage the resource, the wells became useless to the local villagers.

SOLUTION 

Raamos Development Forum  will use funds from this crowdfunder to replace broken hardware with new and reliable pumps and pipes that will bring existing water wells back to life. Raamos Development Forum  will help villagers help themselves by forming Water User Committees to manage the water resource, including collecting reasonable user fees to build up a maintenance fund to pay for future repairs. Immediately people's health improves from groundwater that is safe from waterborne pathogens, like cholera.

LONG-TERM IMPACT 

Women will save hours per day previously spend searching for water, giving them the time and opportunity to start or develop entrepreneurial businesses. Family livelihoods improve from the new sources of income and because health care expenses drop when waterborne diseases become rare. Children, and particularly girl children, will spend more time in school, giving hope for the future. Women are required to be members of the Water User Committee so they are empowered within the community.

PROJECT OUTCOMES FOR THE COMMUNITY 

● Access to clean drinking water changes everything

Accessibility Improves Community Wellbeing 

Our programs reduce the distance to clean, safe water to an average of 300 to 500 metres closer to rural community homesteads which improves community wellbeing

Community Health Improves

Access to clean water reduces the incidence of water-borne illnesses such as typhoid, diarrhoea, dysentery and cholera, especially among children under 12 years. Young children die from dehydration and malnutrition, resulting from diarrheal diseases that could be prevented by clean water and proper hygiene. 

Education Outcomes Improves 

There is an expected increase in school enrolment and retention among girls as the burden of water collection is relieved, improving education outcomes.

Household Economies Improves

Community socioeconomic outcomes improve as household money is saved on medical expenses. An expected average of 2 hours is saved every day on water collection, especially by women, which can be used for productive work and economic development.

Gender Equality 

Access to clean water improves gender equality as women are relieved from travelling long distances to collect water. The burden of water collection is typically tasked to women and children, who can travel up to 4 hours every day, many kilometres from where they live. In addition, women are prevented from doing income-generating work or girls attending school, as most of their day is often spent walking miles for their daily water needs.

Empower African Girls With Health And Education

Help, Support And Empower African Girls With Health And Education 

 

SUMMARY 

The poverty cycle can be broken when girls stay in school. An innovative solution has proven to be key: sustainable menstrual health she can count on. With it, she can avoid infection, shame, exploitation, early marriage, and even trafficking. Your support of this project provides girls quality washable sanitary pads and important reproductive health, hygiene, self-defense and sewing training. Girls, families and communities are empowered as leaders and sewing cooperatives gain income and skill.

CHALLENGE 

Millions of impoverished girls face days with no access to safe menstrual health solutions. Girls turn to unsanitary methods including leaves, bark, newspapers, rocks, and corn cobs, and in some cases allow themselves to be exploited out of desperation for supplies. According to many studies, the provision of safe menstrual health solutions directly decreases dropout rates for girls that have reached the age of menstruation.

SOLUTION 

Through this Program  girls will receive DfG Kits (washable pads) they can count on for 2 - 3 years. Women and girls learn to make kits within their own communities and then distribute and provide health training, while also training local sewing cooperatives and schoolgirls to make kits themselves. In addition to the personal benefits of receiving a DfG Kit, the community economy is enriched as training, tools, and capital become dedicated to expanding access to menstrual health solutions.

LONG-TERM IMPACT 

Girls remain in school, allowing them to have access to continuous education and sustainable solutions. This effects current and future generations of women and men, playing an imperative role in breaking the cycle of poverty. Communities are empowered to discuss and provide menstrual health and sanitation for themselves and others. One woman recently said, "It is as if it is taboo to be a woman." This program changes that with simple, direct and effective solutions that empower.

Support And Educate Vulnerable Children In Uganda

Summary

Imagine a child left homeless when his mother is sent to prison for defending herself against an abusive husband. Children like this roam the rat-infested, flooded alleys of Yumbe all day, scavenging for food and searching for shelter. Without help, they would not survive. Raamos Development Forum  (RDF) to alleviate poverty and facilitate lasting change in the lives of the most vulnerable children and families living in Yumbe District  through education, health and livelihood programs.

 

Challenge

The Yumbe Town  slum has an estimated 25,000 people living on a floodplain with no sanitation. 90% of the population live below the absolute poverty line, earning less than 1USD/day. Over 50% of the population are children for whom the slum is an extremely dangerous place: alcoholism is rife, sexual exploitation is common, hygiene levels are extremely poor and diseases spread quickly. Malaria is still the leading cause of death in Uganda, accounting for over 27% of deaths.

Solution

Raamos Development Forum  (RDF) identify the most vulnerable children and enroll them in different programs in education, disabilities, livelihoods and health. The school is funded by individual sponsors who pay monthly donations. Each child is provided with the opportunity to go to school, two meals a day, access to safe, clean drinking water and free basic medical care. From the first day that the child joins the program, Raamos Development Forum  is very much involved in the child's welfare, health, and education.

Long-Term Impact

By supporting the slum's most vulnerable families, this project can profoundly impact the entire community. With their children safe and fed, parents can focus on lifting themselves out of the extreme poverty that has plagued them. The organization's vocational trainings and investment into small businesses are also facilitating lasting change. Finally shown the love and support they deserve, the children will gain the confidence to become responsible, compassionate assets to their community.