This project has been completed under the direction of Peace Corps Volunteer Lucas Elenitsky.
To read about the beginning of the project, CLICK HERE.
The project was to provide a reliable and accessible supply of water to an unserved area for drinking and irrigation of crops.
Lucas reports:
The Nessa Water Project Part 2 has been completed and has provided many villagers with access to the most fundamental of basic human needs, water. We succeeded in diverting water from the main line to supply a new section of the village.
The Village Headmen, Village Development Committee, and I organized the purchasing of necessary materials, transportation, skilled labor, and digging of the trench that the pipes were installed in.
This project was my second experience extending a water line and it has become my favorite part of Peace Corps service. A lot of the projects I’m involved in (like raising and out-planting fruit tree seedlings) will not see benefits for years to come, but these water projects provide villagers with an immediate improvement in their livelihoods.
Once all necessary materials were delivered and meetings with involved stakeholders were held we began construction of the new line. Villagers cooperated in digging the trench the night before the plumber was scheduled to come so we would be prepared to install the new line the following day.
When the plumber arrived we worked together to lay all of the new line and decide locations of the three taps that were being installed. The plumber then cut into the main line and connected the pipes that we had just constructed. One by one all of the three taps we installed began flowing, and one by one a look of joy, excitement, and relief came over the faces of the villagers involved. They no longer have to walk long distances, over rocky mountainous terrain, with 20-liter buckets of water on their head just to meet their most basic needs of life.
To get outside my village I have to walk three miles down a mountain and every time I pass this section of the village I still get people rushing up to me and thanking me for this project.
I would like to extend this sense of gratitude to Carl Christensen and Water Charity for making such a profound difference in the lives of so many people.
We, in turn, wish to thank Lucas for completing this excellent project, and join in thanking Carl Christensen for his generosity.
