Safe Water for the "Other Half"

Preparing to Drill - Lodga Water Well Drilling - Day 1 - November 19, 2019

Drilling in the Congo

Here's the bad news and the good news.

Hand pumps are very expensive in the Congo.  It costs over $2,000 for a shallow well hand pump.

There is ample supply of water available in these shallow wells for rural poor Congolese.

via www.reuters.com

The amount of water a borehole yields is another key issue. A small community hand pump needs a borehole with a flow rate of 0.1 to 0.3 liters per second. For large-scale irrigation, the rate needs to be much higher, say around 50 liters.

Phoebe White, a water, sanitation and hygiene specialist for the UK Department for International Development based in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, said hand pumps in the DRC cost up to $13,000 apiece but in some areas the aquifers are too deep and other pumps must be used.

In areas of DRC where drilling deep boreholes is required the cost can be around $130,000, although problems of accessibility and infrastructure can push that figure up, according to White.

The researchers say the maps, based on existing geological charts from governments and hundreds of aquifer studies, are aimed at promoting a "more realistic assessments of water security and water stress".

Roger Calow at UK think-tank the Overseas Development Institute, which was involved in the program that spawned the research, said the paper shows water shortages in large parts of Africa do not stem from scarcity.

"What the science is telling us is that we have more storage in these shallow, relatively unproductive (aquifers) than we thought," he said, adding that about 60 percent of Africans still live in rural areas and 80 pct of those rely on groundwater systems.

Calow said a third of hand pumps across Africa have broken down due to a lack of maintenance.

Aid agencies gave the research a cautious welcome.

"The discovery of substantial water reserves under parts of Africa may well be good news for the continent but it may prove hard to access in the near term and, if not sustainably managed, could have unforeseen impacts," Nick Nuttall, spokesman for the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) in Nairobi.

Waiting on Mobile Money Transfer in Congo

Our Congo Water projects are depending upon mobile money transfer in Congo.  Initially, we plan to offer water filters, Life Straw Family and Bio-Sand, under a microcredit plan via mobile money transfer.  In the end, we would like to offer Grundfos LIFELINK or a microcredit version.

We are waiting on M-PESA to come to Congo.  Hopefully, the owners of Vodacom Congo can reach agreement soon.  If not, we hope the Vodacom Group buys out Congo Wireless Network.

Therefore, we are betting that mobile money can transform Congo!

Sustainability

How do you make a water project sustainability?

One, you have to emphasize sustainabilty from the start.  That is, design the project to be maintainable and sustainable.  Train staff members to repair project components.

Two, you have to make sustainability profitable.  That is, plan a maintenance phase for the project. Program funds for maintenance from the beginning through withholding a sustainability and maintenance fund.  And get the users paying early. 

via www.rotary.org

Sustainability is critical to a successful water project. 

Ron Denham, chair of the Water and Sanitation Rotarian Action Group, says the nonprofit world is becoming more aware of that fact. Sustainability means not only securing local support for a water project but also making sure the community can keep it going, he explains.

"The number of nonfunctioning wells in the world is mind-boggling," says Denham. "Rotarians and water agencies are becoming increasingly sensitive to local needs, local capacity, and the local ability to make things happen."

The Village Water Committee

As we start our rural water project (company) in Congo, it is desirable to take a look at the village-wide water supply and its needs.  The village water committee should be primary vehicle.

In Bulape, years ago, the village chief had the desire to complete a village water system.  I remember climbing into a rust tank he had purchased for the village.  He had the idea but we could help at the time.  Next year, we can help make his dream come true.

 

via www.ghanaweb.com

The Government of Ghana has demonstrated, since independence that several functions could be better run by private enterprise, at local level or discontinued. 

5. Water and Sanitation:  Since Zoom Lion assumed the cleaning of streets and management of waste there has been some improvement in the environment in some areas.  However, there is more to be done.  There is a huge employment and economic opportunities in waste management from recycling, composting, transportation, logistics etc.

The Ghana Water Company is not position to provide potable water for all Ghanaians. Water in life, and can prevent many communicable diseases in the system.  The introduction of bored holes and small town water projects has helped it little bit. However, there are some problems with individual bored holes because of the location of the bored holes in close proximity to sanitary soak-aways, or drain fields.  Ghana need to look at introducing community water supply structures whereby gated communities, educational institutions, hospitals and any like minded residents team up and develop a single system from deep bored hole, and supply/pipe the water to homes of members of the community.  This is what is called the Public Utility Districts (PUD) in the USA.  These systems could be managed as non-profit cooperative, or for profit BOT (build, operate and transfer) agreement.  This will decentralize water supply and take a huge burden off the GWC and government and improve the lives of all Ghanaians.

Korea and Congo Discuss Building Water Purification Plants

Is building water purification plants in Congo, a good or bad thing?  Should it be a priority, secondary, or tertiary issue?

Since less than half of Congolese population has access to safe drinking, there is no one solution or "silver bullet" to alleviate the water crisis in Congo.  

Overall, it's good thing.  But there are so many other things needed to be done.  Most importantly, a water purification plant is not help the rural community.  In the rural community, 7 out of 10 Congolese do not have access to safe water.

Here's my verbal response.

 

 

via/from www.koreaherald.com

President Lee Myung-bak on Thursday arrived in Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, for summit talks with his Congolese counterpart Joseph Kabila, marking the first visit by a Korean president to the central African country.

Lee made the trip in return for Kabila’s Seoul visit in March, last year. The two nations established diplomatic ties in 1963.

During summit talks with Kabila Thursday afternoon in Kinshasa time, Lee discussed the development of energy resources, infrastructure construction, development aid and agricultural cooperation.

The two leaders agreed to strengthen cooperation to build water purification plants, seaports and to develop mineral resources such as copper, and to make joint efforts to reconstruct the war-torn African nation by combining Korea’s technologies and Congo’s natural resources.

The Congo Water Project Will Serve The “OTHER HALF”

Only half of the Congolese population have access to safe clean drinking water.  Over 30 million people struggle for safe clean drinking water EVERYDAY.  The Congo Water Project Will Serve The “OTHER HALF”!

The project will provide safe and clean water to rural community.  Access to safe clean drinking is most critical in rural Congo.  It was reported that three out of four rural Congolese do not have access to safe clean drinking water.  Overall, only half the population have safe clean drinking water.  Community health leaders say, “Access to clean water is our number one need.”  Water will improve health, improve food production, promote a higher standard of living, and improve education.

The Congo Water project is a partnership of the Rotary Clubs of Indianapolis Northeast along with other five clubs (District 6560)  and Kananga (DR Congo, District 9150).  Congo Helping Hands, an Indiana-based nonprofit will be the project manager and “Cooperating Organization”.  We are seeking additional partners to join and support the Congo Water project.

The OVERALL project goal is to provide safe, clean, and near water.  Initial water quality test conducted in March 2011 disclosed both coliform and e.Coli bacteria present in existing water sources. 

The project will provide water filter systems to provide safe and clean household water for drinking and cooking.  We plan to test the acceptance and use of the Bio Sand Filter and Family Life Straw Filter.

Also, the project will provide water wells to bring safe and clean water closer to rural villages and communities.  With the help of a Rotary District 6560 grant, we purchased a LS-300 drilling rig and two Basic Utility Vehicles (BUVs) for transporting supplies and equipment.  Drilling operations will start later in 2011.

Help us Serve the “Other Half”.  Come partner with us and make a difference!

  Download Congo Water Project - Flyer - May 2011