Location
Kerr Ardo, Lower Baddibou, North Bank Region, The Gambia
Community Description
Kerr Ardo is a rural village located in the northern part of The Gambia, near the Senegal border. Culturally, it is composed of two tribes, the Wolof and the Fulla. It is the home of about 1,800 people, whose livelihood depends on farming and livestock (cattle, donkeys, goats, and sheep).
Obtaining enough water for survival is very difficult due to the location of Kerr Ardo. Kerr Ardo is far away from the river and its tributaries, and the water table in the area is at a depth of over 40 meters.
The inhabitants, the livestock, and the crops all rely on six hand pumps for water, one of which is reserved exclusively for the use of the school. Kerr Ardo Primary School educates 150 students (62 male, 88 female) from nursery to 6th grade.
The school uses its hand pump for drinking water, cooking, and cleaning. It also needs water to support its garden and tree nursery. Some of the produce from this garden is put into the students’ meals, and the rest is sold. The profit is then used to maintain the garden and buy seeds for the coming year.
Earlier this week, five of the six pumps broke, leaving the community members to depend on one single source of water. Even the school was left without an adequate amount of water.
In the past, the villagers have pooled their money to make minor repairs on said pumps. However, after consulting the mechanic, they were told that four of the broken pumps will need significant repairs.
Project Description
This project is to repair 5 broken pumps in the community. One of them requires only minor repairs, while five need significant repairs.
Project funds will be used to purchase 4 repair kits ($260) and 4 chains ($220).
The community will pay for all labor costs for the 5 pumps, an amount that exceeds the cost of the materials.
Project Impact
The entire community of 1,800 will benefit from the repair of these wells.
Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Mallory Pohlman
Comments
This is a project that exemplifies the ability of Water Charity, through its Appropriate Projects initiative, to react to, and assist immediately in, a crisis situation. Here, the community has been beset by a situation where 5 of the 6 pumps have become nonfunctional. However, they lack the funds to purchase the parts to remedy the situation.
We pre-fund projects immediately, and are therefore able to provide the money for the parts at once. We do, however, depend on your donations to reimburse us, so that we have the money to fund the next projects.
Dollar Amount of Project
$480.00
Donations Collected to Date
$480.00
Dollar Amount Needed
$0.00 – This project has now been fully funded, through the generosity of The Soneva SLOW LIFE Trust as a part of their Clean Water Projects initiative.
We encourage others to continue to donate using the Donate button below, and we will notify Peace Corps Volunteer Mallory Pohlman of your donation. Additional funds will be used to fund the next project by Mallory and/or those of her counterpart PCVs in The Gambia.
This project has been finished. To read about the conclusion of the project, CLICK HERE.