This project is made possible through the partnership of Water Charity and the National Peace Corps Association. 
Location
Botou, Tambacounda, Senegal 
Community Description
Botou is a small, rural Bambara village 10 km northeast of Tambacounda, a region in southern Senegal. There is no electricity, although the lines and poles are up. There is a water tower with functioning spigots in many of the compounds in the village. The village is comprised mostly of subsistence farmers cultivating corn, peanuts, cotton, millet, and sorghum.
There is a health post that serves over ten villages in the surrounding area, which has recently received a professional nurse to oversee the basic health needs of the communities. The health post focuses on maternal and child health, malaria prevention, and other basic health needs.
As a sustainable agriculture extension agent in Botou, Peace Corps Volunteer Lianna Reed helps to improve food security for her community. Lianna reports that she works with the community members to improve gardening practices, diversify crops and fruit trees, and increase their overall knowledge about improving their income-generating activities. While she doesn’t work especially with the health post, she does visit there often and has taken many of her siblings to get medicine there. It has become a very busy post given that it is the closest health facility without spending money to go to the regional hospital in Tamba.
Problem Addressed
The problem is that the health post, while it has been open and working since October 2014, has no running water. Every two days, water is brought to the hospital on a donkey cart in bidons, the ICP (nurse) lives at the health post with her children and women give birth there… but without water, which is difficult, to say the least. They have been asking for water since Lianna arrival in Botou in December 2014, and she has been working tirelessly with the community to get the pipes extended from the existing water tower.
Project Description
The project will extend the existing pipes 400 meters from the current public water spigot to the hospital.
The hospital already is equipped with the piping needed to get water to the sinks and other faucets in the health post. The villagers will be digging the trench for laying the piping (400 m) and then Mahdu Fofana, a plumber in Botou (and the man who oversees the water tower) will be installing the pipes and connecting them to the health posts faucets.
The village is also providing some piping that they got from the water facility in the regional capital. Water Charity funds will be used to purchase the remaining pipes and connection pieces needed to bring the water to the health post.
Project Impact
This project will impact 1,000 in Botou, plus 2,000 from surrounding villages, for a total of over 3,000 people.
Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Lianna Reed
Monitoring and Maintenance
ASUFOR (Water Association in Botou) will be responsible for the monitoring and maintenance of the water system with the PCV checking in to ensure the water is being maintained.
Comments
ASUFOR is the community organization involved in this project. The project will increase the capacity of the health workers, provide a stable water source for the ICP, and enable a garden to provide food for the health post community.
Dollar Amount of Project
$950
Donations Collected to Date
$300
Dollar Amount Needed
$650
ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT OF THE PROJECT
Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will allow you a posted dedication if that is something you would like.
This project has been completed. To read about the conclusion of the project, CLICK HERE.
