Families: 60 across 2 villages

Water Committee: 5 men and 5 women

M’mbala has been home to families for generations, but until recently, the community had never had a water well of its own. Families walked 1 kilometer to the Chiluwa River, where collecting water could take two to three hours for just one bucket. They woke at 4 a.m. and were often able to bring home only two or three buckets a day.

The river was especially difficult during the rainy season, when flooding made the water visibly dirty. Even when it looked clean, residents knew it was unsafe. During the dry season, they had to dig deep into the riverbed to find water. Families experienced diarrhea, dysentery, and cholera and traveled 7 kilometers to Thavite Clinic three or four times a month. Each visit could cost 20,000–30,000 kwacha, making it difficult for families to plan their household budgets.

Since the well was installed, residents say they have not needed to visit the clinic for water-related illness. They can now budget and save instead of worrying about unexpected medical expenses.

Water access has also brought greater peace to families. Women shared that their husbands sometimes suspected them of having extramarital affairs because of the long hours they spent fetching water. Now, husbands can collect water themselves, and residents say there is “peace in the household.”

Families are also finding new ways to build and provide for their community. They are saving together through a community bank, planning gardens, growing mustard, molding bricks to build houses, and raising more livestock. Others are earning income by selling doughnuts, tea, and sweet potatoes.

Daily life has changed, too. Families can now bathe three times a day, wash their clothes, and use enough water for cooking and hygiene. When the community recently held a funeral, they were able to maintain proper hygiene and cook for everyone who came. One small sign of change was a clothesline filled with freshly washed soccer jerseys belonging to “The Destroyers,” the village team that competes against neighboring villages—and, according to the community, always wins.

Children are benefiting from the new water supply as well. Before the well, many could only wash their faces before school—or go without bathing altogether. Some arrived late and were sent home. School attendance was around 40%; today, it has risen to 80%, with residents saying children are now attending and those who are absent are doing so for their own reasons.

For years, the community had heard promises that water would come, but no one had delivered. Now, after generations without a well, residents say, “There is freedom now.”