Service Projects

Uganda Well Water Project

A JOINT SPONSORED INTERNATIONAL WATER PROJECT IS COMPLETED!

In 2005, The Rotary Club of Windward Oahu wrote a Humanitarian grant to help construct a water well for two schools and a village community of about 2,000 people at St. Paul Kaaso and St. Dominic’s primary schools in Rakai District, Uganda.

The Rotary Club of Muyenga Kampala, District 9200 sponsored the project, and we partnered with clubs in Kona, Maui, Honolulu, Lahaina, Downtown Honolulu, Upcountry Maui, District 5000, District 9200 and The Rotary Foundation to fund the project.

The community in the Rakai District of Uganda has been devastated by HIV/AIDS. In some families mothers and fathers have died, leaving only the orphans to care for themselves or be cared for by elderly relatives. These schools were started by the missionaries but now they are being run jointly with the local community.

In 2005, the village’s water source is an unprotected well about four kilometers away from the center of the village. School children and the villagers fetch water from this well which is often shared with cattle. The animals also drink from this well.

The percentage of people with adequate water supply in Uganda is 52% and the population with adequate sanitation is 39%. This figure of course includes town dwellers. In the villages however, the percentage is very low.

Our goal was to provide clean water to the rural community in Uganda, and reduce the rate of water born diseases. Clean water will help them to raise their standard of living and improve their hygiene. The children will be saved the long journey of fetching water from four kilometers away.

The Community and school will be involved in the project from the very beginning. They will be taught how to look after the well. The Headmaster will be responsible for mobilizing the children and the community to clean and protect the well together with the local water and sanitation committee He will also be responsible for the maintenance of the well.

The total cost of the construction of the well is $12,637.00 US, and was funded by the various Rotary Clubs, Districts 5000 and 9200 and The Rotary Foundation in 2006 to begin construction of the well, which was finally completed in 2007. Check out the photos!

Mahalo to everyone involved!