Safe Drinking Water for Families in Kenya
Where
Kenya
Why
Improve the drinking water in Kenya.
Funded by
Procter & Gamble
When
2017–2018
What
Water resources are few in Kenya’s remote, impoverished Kitui South Sub-County. Rainfall is inadequate and surface water limited to rivers that form during rainy season and dry up immediately after the rains end. As a result, only 15 percent of Kitui South’s population has access to safe drinking water. At some times of the year, families must walk more than four miles to meet their needs. The water situation takes a toll on county residents—both directly and indirectly. Poor water contributes to the burden of diarrheal disease and thus to school absenteeism; transporting water in heavy jerry cans over great distances takes its toll on both pregnant women and on children, whose education is sacrificed to the family need for water.
In response, with support from P&G, CMMB:
- Implemented water, sanitation, and hygiene interventions to reach 40,000 people across two particularly hard-hit wards, Kanziko and Athi.
- Engaged and trained teachers, community health volunteers and supervisors, and nurses from maternal and child health clinics on the need for water purification.
- Distributed water purification materials to schools, clinics, and households.