On June 11, 2011 Seeds of Hope’s biosand filter crew visited Nkwazi to conduct a follow up visits in homes in the community of Nkwazi, where Atlas Copco partnered with us to install 80 filters last year. Here are our crews notes from the field. 

Lister Namwila, House #2570 On the 11^th of June 2011, we visited house number 2570 for Lister Namwila. The filter has been working well and effectively since 2010, but recently when Lister traveled away from home for a month, her children did not use the filter properly and it became blocked. As a result, the family had stopped using the filter. We unblocked the filter using the swirl and dump method and it began to function normally. Lister says the water tastes better than unfiltered water and it is cool.

Violet Mwansa, House #2581 Violet’s filter has been working well since the date of installation in 2010, but two months ago it developed a problem and began to leak. Our crew plans to return to Ms. Mwansa’s home soon to repair the leak. 

Kwanga Phiri, House #2575 Mrs. Phiri admitted that she had not been using her filter because she was not aware of the importance of using a biosand filter. We educated her on the benefits of using drinking filtered drinking water, and she has decided to start using her filter. 

Jennifer Simukiko, House #2838 Mrs. Simukiko reported that the filter has been working well, with no leaks or problems to report. “My family’s mind is at ease when drinking this water because we know that it is germ-free. It tastes good, and we do not suffer from waterborne diseases anymore.”

Last year, Atlas Copco funded the drilling of a borehole in the community of Lubuto. A team from Seeds of Hope recently conducted a follow up visit, and here is what they reported:

On the 11^th of June 2011, the crew went for a follow up to see how the borehole is working at Lubuto. They met with Lubuto’s water committee, and community members who could give them a sense for how the borehole was impacting their neighborhood. The team found that the borehole was working well but, were told that it frequently broke down and had to be repaired.  Pastor Kasongo (chairman of the water committee) said the reason for the constant breakdowns  was overuse. “People from far away communities come to draw water from this well. It works 24hours and hence the constant breakdowns.”

The crew and community proposed as a solution creating two more boreholes in Lubuto. To relieve the demand on the existing borehole they proposed one at the market and one at the community’s school. 

Atlas Copco partnered with Seeds of Hope to drill a well at the market in the community of Mushili. On June 10, 2011 our team returned to the borehole to ensure that it was functioning properly, and to hear how people in the community were finding life in Mushili with a new borehole. Here is what some of them had to say.

Lizzie Tembo and Florence Nikupala: ”The borehole has been working very well, without any problems. Before, we used to have to go very far for water, but now that the water is close, those of us who work here selling our goods in the market are very happy.”

Mr. Nyimbili: “The borehole not only helps the marketeers, but also the surrounding community.”

The water committee:”We have set up ‘working hours’ for the borehole. When then the hours are over, the borehole is closed. This is done to avoid overuse and to prevent it from breaking down.” 

Thank you for partnering with Seeds of Hope to bring hope and change to this community! 

Ekiya Chibundama’s words speak volumes: “I am very happy because my children will always have safe and clean water.”

A resident of Lubuto, Ekiya testified of how terrible the water situation had beenin the part of the community where she lived before Seeds of Hope completed a borehole there on March 26, 2010. Many people suffered from constant stomach problems, and water-borne diseases were a chronic battle. They realized that the water from their hand-dug wells was making them sick— it even smelled and tasted bad— but had no other water source. One of Ekiya’s greatest grievances was that her children (as well as many others throughout the community) were frequently unable to attend school due to illnesses they had contracted by drinking contaminated water. 

Pastor Kasongo, who oversees a local congregation, shared during the hygiene and sanitation training that followed the completion of the well, “The only way to develop our community is to implement what we have learned at this training.” Among the lessons learned were how to keep domestic animals from contaminating stored water and water sources, and how to construct a tippy tap (hand-washing device) from readily available materials. 

The community has formed a hygiene and sanitation club that will work hand in hand with the water committee to ensure that more people will be able to share in Ekiya’s confidence for a healthy future, and Pastor Kasongo’s hope for a transformed community. 

In June 2010, Water For All partnered with Seeds of Hope to install 80 biosand filters in the community of Nkwazi. The recipients ranged from small and large families to local schools. Excitement filled the community as people used wheelbarrows to transport the concrete filters and media to the homes and buildings where they would be installed.

At Wipham Community School the principal, Mrs. Nsokoshi, began noticing the improvements in the health and conditions the filters had brought to the school. She was so impressed she decided to send her staff to BioSand filter trainings at the Seeds of Hope resource center in Ndola to learn more about the filters and even begin building the filters themselves. 

Thanks to your involvement, hundreds of people in Nkwazi now have clean, safe water to drink, access to resources teaching them how to live differently, and the tools to bring health and transformation to their community. 

A simple truth was once said: “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” (Helen Keller) The students at a school in the community of Chiwala became living examples of this from May 8 to June 5, 2010 when then partnered with Seeds of Hope’s drilling team to create a source of safe water for the school. 

Chiwala Basic School’s 800 students and staff had been drawing water from a borehole that had been drilled close to the school’s latrines. The water collected there was extremely contaminated, and caused many illnesses. But as teacher Joseph Siniyiza told the drill team, they could not abandon the borehole because it was their only water source. So students, teachers, and administrators had no choice but to continue using water from the well, despite the hazard it represented to their health. Common health issues included bilharzia (a chronic disease known to impair health and cognitive development) and frequent diarrhea. 

When Seeds of Hope’s drill team arrived to begin working on the new borehole, the students joined together to do what they could to be a part of changing the future of their school and those who study there. They hauled water needed for drilling, dug holes, laid concrete, and helped install the hand pump. 

While the borehole was in process, our Hygiene and Sanitation team conducted a one-day training attended by 108 teachers and students. The participants learned the differences between safe and unsafe water, how to keep clean water from becoming contaminated, and the importance of washing their hands with soap. School administrators then planned to hold meetings for the other students and parents to spread knowledge of good hygiene and sanitation practices throughout the community, with follow-up by Chiwala’s new Water Committee. 

Once the new well was complete, Chiwala’s students did not just receive a source of clean water. To them, it remains as a reminder of how they worked together to bring health, hope, and transformation to their school and community.

Thank you for your generosity in partnering with Seeds of Hope and the students of Chiwala Basic School to complete this borehole.