Location
Katumen village, West Pokot District, Kenya
Community Description
Katumen is a village in the West Pokot district that is located in an arid and semi-arid region of western Kenya. It is 150 kilometers away from the nearest hospital, which is in the town of Kapenguria. The only way to reach Katumen is through rocky and tough dirt roads. There is no tarmac near the village.
Katumen, like most villages in West Pokot, receives unpredictable rainfall throughout the year. The limited access to water has caused overpopulation at the small water points. This is causing inner group conflicts as men want to use the water for their cattle, and the women struggle to get the water for the household and children. The overuse of the small water source available to Katumen has led to environmental degradation.
Katumen has no sanitation facilities, and therefore they directly contaminate the little water they have. Many community members and children die from water-borne diseases.
There exists a shallow well that was previously used for drinking water, cooking, and bathing/keeping clean that is in disrepair and unable to serve the needs of the community.
Project Description
This project for Katumen is to repair the pump on the shallow well and restore it to functionality.
In a prior visit to the community, Ryan took apart the top portion of the pump with limited tools and noted that at least the chain that connects the hand assembly to the connecting rod was broken. It is assumed that the connecting rod, and or, cylinder are also in disrepair, along with connecting rubbers. The exact parts that will be needed will be determined during the next visit.
The next visit will be with a local well repair expert. The community will elect a water committee to maintain the funds and supervise the project and training of villagers in the technology. They will also establish a means for the collection of donations from community members for future repairs.
The pump will then be fully disassembled and a parts list made.
During the second visit, the parts will be brought to the community and the repairs made.
Water Charity funds will pay for the replacement parts for the well, the artisan, fuel, translator, driver, and tools to maintain and repair the well.
Two trainings will be conducted on diseases caused by contaminated water and lack of sanitation.
Project Impact
105 people in 15 households will benefit from the project.
Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Lussia Kamberian and Ryan Weber
Comments
As a result of the project, the community will learn how to properly take the pump apart, identify problems, and put the pump back together. This will ensure the sustainability of the project.
Lussia and Ryan previously completed the Kapchemogen Pump Repair Project – Kenya.
Dollar Amount of Project
$555.00
Donations Collected to Date
$0.00
ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW
Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you “naming rights”, if that is something you would like.
Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of the Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.
Dollar Amount Needed
$555.00
This project has been finished. To read about the conclusion of the project, CLICK HERE.