Kenya Water Relief Project
More than 3,500,000 people die every year from water related diseases (source World Health Organisation)
"Quest4Change works to improve health in rural communities in Kenya through Dam building, education and farming initiatives"
The 2009 team of summer volunteers in action.
Quest4Change has been working with the
Kamba people of Kenya since 2004 constructing small scale dams, providing thousands of
people with clean drinking water.
Working with our charity partner Excellent Development we aim to
transform the local environment by improving water supplies, food production,
health and incomes.
What's the problem? Over 40% of people in Sub Saharan Africa have no access to clean water. The southeast region of Kenya is semi-arid and suffers from poor soil fertility and limited rainfall, making it prone to food shortages. Working with project partners Excellent Development these dam-building programs conserve and improve the local environment and provide protection against the impacts of droughts.
How Quest4Change helps: 9 Teams of volunteers have spent time on this project building dams, water tanks and planting trees since 2005. This work has provided a clean, safe, reliable water supply for 1,000s of people.
Latest News:
Excellent Development, our charity partners in this project, were one of the Daily Telegraphs Christmas appeal charities last year which just goes to prove how incredible and important the work they do is.
The 2009 summer team (above) built and impressive 5 dams and extended a pre-existing dam. This was due in no small part to the 50+ volunteers who turned up from the local Munathi community, who were joined later the same week by 70+ volunteers from a community 10k away!
Three years of severe drought has resulted in the water situation reaching a critical level in this area. The dams the team are building proves how important Quest4Change's support with volunteers and funds has never been more urgent. Money raised by the volunteers also helped to extend the store for Excellent Developments food for work scheme.
Achievement's (Updated Dec 2009)
- Constructed 21 sand dams (potentially supporting 20,000 villagers)
- Extended or repaired 16 sand dams
- Built 3 water tanks
- Planted over 100 saplings in local schools
- Organised over 10 Education Days with local schools
- Provided ongoing funding for employment of extension workers to carry on work, to provide seeds for local communities and for other activities as required by local community
- Played 100's of games of football and run sports days with local school kids.
How you can help: Be a Secret Millionaire for this project, don't worry, you don't have to be an actual Millionaire to help out. Provide one person with clean drinking water for life for just £7. Plant: 3 tree saplings for just £10. Build a Sand Dam for £7,000 - providing year round clean water for at least 1,200 people. BE A SECRET MILLIONAIRE.
Project Partner:
Working with Excellent development this project supports the United Nations Millennium Development, goal 7, target 3 which aims to halve, by 2015, the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation
10 Quest4Change volunteers took just 4 days to complete their first sand dam on this summer's Water Relief Project with Excellent Development. They went on to build a further 3 dams and extend another. The sand dams are vital to the communities in this arid part of Kenya. They provide a year round supply of clean water for drinking and irrigation.
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