plan 238BioSand Filter and WASH Outreach for Mukono, Jinja and Kampala Communities

Summary

ASD partners with Mukono Women's AIDS Task Force (MWATF), Masese Women' Association (MWA), Katosi Women's Development Trust (KWDT) and Uganda Community Based Association for Child Welfare (UCOBAC) creating BSF projects in Central Uganda

Background

The basic problem in most rural and peri-urban areas in Uganda can be long distances traveled by women and children to access water and also the poor distribution of the wells and springs within villages. Many homes are very far from these water sources making especially the elderly members of communities totally unable to access water. Also, because of the AIDS crisis, a generation of working class has been decreased and many older people, widows and orphaned youth ultimately become the primary caregivers and responsible for the surviving children. Provision of training and financial assistance to women-led households has proven to be a viable way to contribute to improved welfare of families in the Ugandan context.

Location

Kampala, Katosi, Mukono, Jinja, Kampala , Uganda
  • 2 participants | show more

    3 Questions

    Kristen Kosinski of The Samburu Project

    Gemma, Its great that the BSFs can be produced locally with local resources. I have a couple questions about that aspect of the project. First, what is the cost of the production of a BSF? Is it low enough for producers to earn a profit selling BSFs at a market price? The background section of the application identifies the problem of...

    Gemma,
    Its great that the BSFs can be produced locally with local resources. I have a couple questions about that aspect of the project. First, what is the cost of the production of a BSF? Is it low enough for producers to earn a profit selling BSFs at a market price?
    The background section of the application identifies the problem of the the long distances traveled by women and children to access water. Does the project do anything to address this aspect of the problem?
    Finally, could you elaborate on how ASD plans to stimulate demand for BSFs?

    Regards,
    Robert

    • Gemma Bulos of A Single Drop

      Hi Robert thanks so much for your questions! It really is a joy to receive input from other implementers and trainers because it can only make our program stronger and more clear! 1) The average cost of the BSF in the regions in Uganda that we are targeting is an average $75US. This includes materials for the construction, labor, transp...

      Hi Robert

      thanks so much for your questions! It really is a joy to receive input from other implementers and trainers because it can only make our program stronger and more clear!

      1) The average cost of the BSF in the regions in Uganda that we are targeting is an average $75US. This includes materials for the construction, labor, transport, IEC and extra materials for the householder (safe storage containers, educational materials), at least 3 follow-up visits. We calculate the costs as if it were a product on the market because this is a microbusiness and we help the women to conduct themselves like a microbusiness creating costing that reflects actual market value of the product as if were run like a professional small business. Other costs that are included in that price that are not directly benefitting the user are marketing costs (promotional materials, community WASH seminars), production facility rental and utilities, and outreach.

      Because the costs of the filters are more than some of the lower income households can afford, the women's groups can be contracted by local NGOs or international funders to buy the filters at full price (mostly in bulk) or at a price that can make the filters highly subsidized so that the staff can continue to have a livelihood and all the costs are covered for them to continue their business. This is the market that the women's group has identified as being one of their key clients. We did this with one of our other PWX projects in Mozambique. We knew that the price of these filters when considering all the costs incurred by having a micro-business would make the filter's price higher than most of the community can afford, so the group appealed to NGOs and applied for grants that would pay for the actual costs of the filter construction (as opposed to breaking up the line items by materials, labor, utilities, marketing etc and having the funder decide that they would only fund one line item) This is crucial for a business so that they could continue to function, service the most needy as well as those who can afford it, and be able to offer a When we determined this price,

      2) As far as the long distances, 2 of these women's groups have other water technologies that they already offer in their communities. Mostly rainwater harvesting, so their clients have access to alternative water sources already. But for those areas that don't have access to water, these regions, the issue is more that they have access to water but it is highly contaminated

      3) We work with the women to create social marketing strategies to promote the filters. Currently, the women are implementing a pilot program to place 25-35 filters in their current communities in key places like schools, local leaders households, very needy households and other people in the communities who are respected in the community because they will be collecting data and interviewing all of them during the next 3 months to find out what they like, don't like, what matters to them, their priorities. From there, we will help them design a marketing strategy based on the testimonials of the people using the filter, and creating some informational and promotional campaigns that will appeal to what the community wants. Also, they will be conducting water testing throughout the pilot to show the effectiveness of the filter which will add value to the social marketing campaigns and help people to see not only that people like it, but that it really works!

      I hope that's helpful!

      Thanks
      gemma

  • 2 participants | show more

    Project management and reporting

    Rajesh Shah of Blue Planet Network

    Hi Gemma and Mariah, How do you plan to manage this project, esp. on PWX? MWATF and UCOBAC are already members and we hope they complete the project reports for which they have been funded thru PWX. They have started to report on PWX, but we would like them to complete. By having finished reports and uploading photos, they can build the...

    Hi Gemma and Mariah,

    How do you plan to manage this project, esp. on PWX?

    MWATF and UCOBAC are already members and we hope they complete the project reports for which they have been funded thru PWX. They have started to report on PWX, but we would like them to complete. By having finished reports and uploading photos, they can build their history and experience in PWX so that reviewers and others can see what they have done and assess their potential for further work.
    I have invited them to participate in this review so as to, at the least, be aware of the Q&A going on.

    It would be nice to see KWDT and Masese Women's Assoc. also participate by becoming members.

    Knowing that Mariah, and Gemma, make several visits to the women's groups and projects, it would be nice to see her visit reports on all the earlier AWWC project's done. That way, we can count and see how many and which projects got visited and learn from the knowledge shared.

    I would like this 'program' be planned to result in many projects, each of whose main report becomes the responsibility of that particular implementer. Assuming that there are likely to be many different visits, esp. after the pilot, visitor reports should done by all those who visit someone else's project.

    Thanks,
    Rajesh

    • Gemma Bulos of A Single Drop

      Hi Rajesh Currently, we just finished Phase 1 of our project which was the training. Next, the women are going to implement their 3 month pilot project. this funding is supporting the next phase which will begin at the beginning of the year when we will be alongside them to assess the outcomes of the project and help them make their bus...

      Hi Rajesh

      Currently, we just finished Phase 1 of our project which was the training. Next, the women are going to implement their 3 month pilot project.

      this funding is supporting the next phase which will begin at the beginning of the year when we will be alongside them to assess the outcomes of the project and help them make their business plans.

      The reason we applied for this grant including 4 implementers is because none of these groups have any deep experience in the implementation of the BSF. We are managing the program by overseeing, coaching, providing further training so that each women's group can get the experience they need to have a larger more sustainable BSF program.

      Thanks
      gemma

  • 3 participants | show more

    Budget and Photos

    Iskaka Msigwa of Tanzania Mission to the Poor and Disabled (PADI)

    1. Can you attach detailed budget to enable us see how the budget relate with the proposed activities? 2. It is important if we can see few photos showing the actual situation or part of project you are going to solve in the area Thanks Msigwa

    1. Can you attach detailed budget to enable us see how the budget relate with the proposed activities?
    2. It is important if we can see few photos showing the actual situation or part of project you are going to solve in the area
    Thanks
    Msigwa

    • Rajesh Shah of Blue Planet Network

      Yes, please provide a bit more details. E.g. Where is your office now wrt all the activities? Where would the safe storage be? Multiple locations? Or at the office? Photos from your workshops would be great, as well as any photos from the regions. It would be nice to understand the water sources and their quantity throughout the year....

      Yes, please provide a bit more details.

      E.g. Where is your office now wrt all the activities?
      Where would the safe storage be? Multiple locations? Or at the office?

      Photos from your workshops would be great, as well as any photos from the regions.

      It would be nice to understand the water sources and their quantity throughout the year. The application background talks about the long distances women & children walk, and that some elderly cannot do this. This project will not change that problem. Please clarify the population for which the project will solve and for how much of the year.

      Thanks,
      Rajesh

      • Gemma Bulos of A Single Drop

        Hi Msigwa and Rajesh The first phase of our project, the 3-week training just finished last week and the women's groups are regrouping with their teams to start the action steps towards implementing the 3 month pilot program. Rajesh, I'm not sure about your safe storage question. Each of the householders/BSF beneficiaries will receive ...

        Hi Msigwa and Rajesh

        The first phase of our project, the 3-week training just finished last week and the women's groups are regrouping with their teams to start the action steps towards implementing the 3 month pilot program.

        Rajesh, I'm not sure about your safe storage question. Each of the householders/BSF beneficiaries will receive a jerican with a cover that will be their safe storage container.

        The program is in 4 communities and each have different sources ranging from dirty river water, contaminated well water, illegal tapping into municipal systems and lake water.

        Photos to come! And breakdown of the women's costing that they calculated on their own at the training.

        thanks
        gemma

    • Gemma Bulos of A Single Drop

      Hi Msigwa and Rajesh The first phase of our project, the 3-week training just finished last week and the women's groups are regrouping with their teams to start the action steps towards implementing the 3 month pilot program. Rajesh, I'm not sure about your safe storage question. Each of the householders/BSF beneficiaries will receive ...

      Hi Msigwa and Rajesh

      The first phase of our project, the 3-week training just finished last week and the women's groups are regrouping with their teams to start the action steps towards implementing the 3 month pilot program.

      Rajesh, I'm not sure about your safe storage question. Each of the householders/BSF beneficiaries will receive a jerican with a cover that will be their safe storage container.

      The program is in 4 communities and each have different sources ranging from dirty river water, contaminated well water, illegal tapping into municipal systems and lake water.

      Photos to come! And breakdown of the women's costing that they calculated on their own at the training.

      thanks
      gemma

  • 2 participants | show more

    School filters

    Claire Rumpsa of Aqua Clara International

    Gemma, I really like ASD's approach to constructing the filters with local materials and local expertise. ACI has run some pilot programs in Uganda and we appreciate the difference in purchasing power there as compared to Kenya. I think the sliding scale of filter prices is good solution. Just a few questions. When a filter is instal...

    Gemma,
    I really like ASD's approach to constructing the filters with local materials and local expertise. ACI has run some pilot programs in Uganda and we appreciate the difference in purchasing power there as compared to Kenya. I think the sliding scale of filter prices is good solution.

    Just a few questions. When a filter is installed in a school, what protocol does ASD put in place to ensure that the filter is used and maintained properly especially during school holidays? What profit does the filter producing group make from the sale of a filter? How do you see the project continuing should the money to subsidize filters stop?

    Thanks and good luck!
    Claire
    Aqua Clara International

    • Claire Rumpsa of Aqua Clara International

      One more question. Which water testing equipment are you using, and what proportion of the filters will be tested after installation? Claire

      One more question. Which water testing equipment are you using, and what proportion of the filters will be tested after installation?
      Claire

      • Gemma Bulos of A Single Drop

        ASD uses the Portable Microbiology Lab which uses a 10ml Colilert, an ecoli presence absence test alongside a Petrifilm, a 1ml test which quantifies ecoli presence which indicates the level of risk. It requires no local expertise, no expensive labs or equipment or electricity to conduct. The users can test the water at the source, where it...

        ASD uses the Portable Microbiology Lab which uses a 10ml Colilert, an ecoli presence absence test alongside a Petrifilm, a 1ml test which quantifies ecoli presence which indicates the level of risk. It requires no local expertise, no expensive labs or equipment or electricity to conduct. The users can test the water at the source, where it on their body overnight to incubate and find out the next day not only if their water is contaminated, but how much it is contaminated.

        We don't use them to replace traditional tests, but it serves as an affordable and reliable indicator that the community can use themselves to conduct their own testing. It has been an amazing educational tool for us in our work in the Philippines as we are a national repository for the tests there. In Uganda, we will be a repository for the tests starting early next year. There is huge interest by the government and local organizations in Uganda, and UN-Habitat is promoting it all over East Africa, however there still is no streamlined mechanism for distribution, which is why we are going to be a repository and training organization to make sure they are accessible. Our ASD USA office gets them at a reduced price and supplies both the Philippines office and soon the Uganda office.

        I hope that's clear!
        gemma

    • Gemma Bulos of A Single Drop

      ASD uses the Portable Microbiology Lab which uses a 10ml Colilert, an ecoli presence absence test alongside a Petrifilm, a 1ml test which quantifies ecoli presence which indicates the level of risk. It requires no local expertise, no expensive labs or equipment or electricity to conduct. The users can test the water at the source, where it...

      ASD uses the Portable Microbiology Lab which uses a 10ml Colilert, an ecoli presence absence test alongside a Petrifilm, a 1ml test which quantifies ecoli presence which indicates the level of risk. It requires no local expertise, no expensive labs or equipment or electricity to conduct. The users can test the water at the source, where it on their body overnight to incubate and find out the next day not only if their water is contaminated, but how much it is contaminated.

      We don't use them to replace traditional tests, but it serves as an affordable and reliable indicator that the community can use themselves to conduct their own testing. It has been an amazing educational tool for us in our work in the Philippines as we are a national repository for the tests there. In Uganda, we will be a repository for the tests starting early next year. There is huge interest by the government and local organizations in Uganda, and UN-Habitat is promoting it all over East Africa, however there still is no streamlined mechanism for distribution, which is why we are going to be a repository and training organization to make sure they are accessible. Our ASD USA office gets them at a reduced price and supplies both the Philippines office and soon the Uganda office.

      I hope that's clear!
      gemma

    • Gemma Bulos of A Single Drop

      Hi Claire I am always happy to get questions from other BSF implementers! So much value in sharing! 1) School installations - we first conduct a teacher and parent volunteer BSF orientation to get buy in from the teachers and parents. Then we try to identify a team of people who will be in charge. That will usually determine where the f...

      Hi Claire

      I am always happy to get questions from other BSF implementers! So much value in sharing!

      1) School installations - we first conduct a teacher and parent volunteer BSF orientation to get buy in from the teachers and parents. Then we try to identify a team of people who will be in charge. That will usually determine where the filters will be placed. If there are certain teachers who will maintain a filter, then we can place it in their classrooms. Many times, we'll try and find those who live close to the school and can come during holidays and weekends. If there's a school caretaker, they are generally pretty close and also personally benefit from maintaining it since they will have to put water through it everyday.

      2) The profit from the actual costs of the filter and labor will go towards WASH Outreach, marketing and reinvestment back into the women's groups outreach

      3) What's great about these women's groups is that they have other services they offer. This is just adding to their stable of services and expertise and they all have more than one target area that they work in. So there's potential for outreach into neighboring communities and also openness to learn other technologies that they can also offer other than just the filter.

      I hoe that's helpful!
      gemma

  • 4 participants | show more

    Maintenance

    Idriss Kamara of Safer Future Youth Development Project

    Hello, nice to see that you are implementing biosand - we hope to do this in the future. I may be mistaken but I was under the impression that the biosand filter requires regular cleaning of the top layer due to clogging, also if the top layer is cleaned improperly, the biolayer can be trapped in the sand and die off causing a bad odour wh...

    Hello, nice to see that you are implementing biosand - we hope to do this in the future. I may be mistaken but I was under the impression that the biosand filter requires regular cleaning of the top layer due to clogging, also if the top layer is cleaned improperly, the biolayer can be trapped in the sand and die off causing a bad odour which may affect usage. Do you train the communities on the maintenance of the filter?

    Kind Regards,

    Idriss

    • Gemma Bulos of A Single Drop

      Hello Idriss Thanks for your questions! I hope that someday you'll be able to implement the BSF as well! There are many answers to your questions so I hope this is clear! 1) Daily Maintenance - the daily maintenance of the BSF is very minimal. In general the daily maintenance is simply to clean the spout, keep the area around the filte...

      Hello Idriss

      Thanks for your questions! I hope that someday you'll be able to implement the BSF as well!

      There are many answers to your questions so I hope this is clear!

      1) Daily Maintenance - the daily maintenance of the BSF is very minimal. In general the daily maintenance is simply to clean the spout, keep the area around the filter clean, ensure that the safe storage is clean.

      2) Maintenance due to slow flow rate - after identifying that the flowrate to the filter is slow NOT because of any clog in the piping, then we do a method called "swirl and dump". Basically, it stirs the sand at the top to be suspended in the standing water so that you can empty out that water along with the extra sand to "unclog" the filter mechanism. This timing will vary with every filter based on the turbidity of the user's water source.

      3) Biolayer - the biolayer is actually in the top layer of sand. If the filter has been cleaned "improperly" it may only be because too much sand was removed and there is no longer just 2" of standing water, which is the amount of standing water needed for the biolayer to exist and to ensure the "healthy" maintenance of the biolayer. If there is not enough sand, and the standing water level is more than 2" above the sand, then it will indeed impact the effectiveness of the filter as the biolayer is one of the 4 pathogen removal mechanisms of the filter.

      Proper maintenance is crucial to the peak effectiveness of the filter. The user is oriented to the filter during the installation. In this orientation, they learn about how it works, how to use and maintain it as well as other proper sanitation and hygiene practices that the household needs to employ to ensured ongoing family health.

      Because the BSF is often a very new technology to the community, our team will make sure to conduct several follow-up visits to ensure that the user likes it, to answer any questions, and to check to see if the filter is being used and maintained properly. The first follow-up visit is 2 weeks after installation. The second is about 5 weeks after installation. Other visits will be conducted as needed. The 3rd visit will be in less than 6 months after installation.

      I hope that is helpful!

      Best
      Gemma

    • Pat Klever of Lifewater International

      Idriss, Yes, you are correct about thei importance of biosand filter maintenance. Community training at the household level is required to make sure at least one family member undertands and is committed to proper filter maintenance. However, people are quick to realize the effectiveness of the filters and are impressed with the health...

      Idriss,

      Yes, you are correct about thei importance of biosand filter maintenance. Community training at the household level is required to make sure at least one family member undertands and is committed to proper filter maintenance. However, people are quick to realize the effectiveness of the filters and are impressed with the health improvements filters bring. We have seen much ownership built and pride in learning and completing proper maintenance. The local biosand program coordinator spot-checks filter maintenance continuously into insure proper use and care. (By the way, the proposal currently submitted to PWX for this cycle does not include a Biosand filter component.)

      • Gemma Bulos of A Single Drop

        Hi Pat thanks for your input on the BSF! I'm curious, in your last comment it says "by the way, the proposal currently submitted to PWX for this cycle does not include a Biosand filter component". I hope we were clear in our proposal because there is a BSF component in this program. That is our main focus. Perhaps there was confusion w...

        Hi Pat

        thanks for your input on the BSF! I'm curious, in your last comment it says "by the way, the proposal currently submitted to PWX for this cycle does not include a Biosand filter component".

        I hope we were clear in our proposal because there is a BSF component in this program. That is our main focus. Perhaps there was confusion with our other proposal. But if you are referring to this proposal, maybe you can help us understand where that was not understood that this is specifically a BSF project.

        Thanks!
        gemma

        • Rajesh Shah of Blue Planet Network

          Hi Gemma, I believe Pat was talking about her own (Lifewater's) application where there is no BSF component. Regards, Rajesh

          Hi Gemma,

          I believe Pat was talking about her own (Lifewater's) application where there is no BSF component.

          Regards,
          Rajesh

      • Rajesh Shah of Blue Planet Network

        Hi Gemma, I believe Pat was talking about her own (Lifewater's) application where there is no BSF component. Regards, Rajesh

        Hi Gemma,

        I believe Pat was talking about her own (Lifewater's) application where there is no BSF component.

        Regards,
        Rajesh

    • Gemma Bulos of A Single Drop

      Hi Pat thanks for your input on the BSF! I'm curious, in your last comment it says "by the way, the proposal currently submitted to PWX for this cycle does not include a Biosand filter component". I hope we were clear in our proposal because there is a BSF component in this program. That is our main focus. Perhaps there was confusion w...

      Hi Pat

      thanks for your input on the BSF! I'm curious, in your last comment it says "by the way, the proposal currently submitted to PWX for this cycle does not include a Biosand filter component".

      I hope we were clear in our proposal because there is a BSF component in this program. That is our main focus. Perhaps there was confusion with our other proposal. But if you are referring to this proposal, maybe you can help us understand where that was not understood that this is specifically a BSF project.

      Thanks!
      gemma

      • Rajesh Shah of Blue Planet Network

        Hi Gemma, I believe Pat was talking about her own (Lifewater's) application where there is no BSF component. Regards, Rajesh

        Hi Gemma,

        I believe Pat was talking about her own (Lifewater's) application where there is no BSF component.

        Regards,
        Rajesh

    • Rajesh Shah of Blue Planet Network

      Hi Gemma, I believe Pat was talking about her own (Lifewater's) application where there is no BSF component. Regards, Rajesh

      Hi Gemma,

      I believe Pat was talking about her own (Lifewater's) application where there is no BSF component.

      Regards,
      Rajesh