Community Development Entrepreneurs were trained to install rainwater harvesting systems at Nyatieko primary school and will sell low cost, high quality RWH units to the surrounding community
Narrative
The RWH project at Nyatieko primary was a wonderful learning experience for the local ACI construction team. With very little oversight the team constructed a high quality RWH system under best practices for RWH systems globally. The ACI team placed two 2,500 L tanks with 15 m of high quality gutter feeding each. A total of 5,000 L of water storage capacity with 30 m of gutter feeding those tanks.
Sustainability
Creating and measuring long-term impact
The community health promoter in the area will be holding meetings of a school club for the children twice a month. During these visits she will be able to check on the performance of the RWH system and report any problems she finds directly to the ACI office. The five USD is covered by the school according to the agreement the school and stakeholders signed prior to construction of the RWH system. This cost will cover any breakages due to poor use and silicone costs if the system begins to leak because of wear and tear on the gutter runs.
Other Issues
Unusual and unexpected issues faced during project execution
The community surrounding Nyatieko Primary was very skeptical of the ACI construction model. Through several talks and examples of how the system was going to work the community eventually relaxed and allowed the team to do their work. After the system the results showed very clearly the value of following the best practice model for construction and all issues were resolved with the surrounding community.
Learnings
Knowledge of project and process for sharing
This project reminded the ACI team of the importance of gaining community acceptance. If the community is not interested or trusting in the program there is no way it will be successful in that area. Community sensitization and acceptance is paramount in the application of a new project in any area.
Impact
People Impacted: 246
People Getting Safe Drinking Water: 244
Total number of students, teachers and support staff present at the school on a given day. In conjunction with the Aqua Clara bio sand filter program. Increased access to water within the school compound allows the school to use the filters to their full potential. We gathered this information from a survey done of all ACI partner schools done before the implementation of the RWH program.
School Children Getting Water: 233
Total number of students present at the school on a given day. Nursery class through standard eight. We gathered this information from a survey done of all ACI partner schools done before the implementation of the RWH program.
People Getting Sanitation: 244
Total number of students, teachers and support staff present at the school on a given day. In conjunction with the Aqua Clara hand washing stations already in place at the school. Increased access to water within the school compound makes use of these hand washing stations much easier. We gathered this information from a survey done of all ACI partner schools done before the implementation of the RWH program.
People Getting Other Benefits: 2
Community development entrepreneur and community health promoter, both ACI trained individuals are trained in construction and sales of high quality RWH systems. Increasing the knowledge base of these individuals making each a more valuable resource to their community.
