P.O. Box 635 Manhattan Beach, CA 90267 info@waterwellsforafrica.org +1.310.995.7079 (M-F, 9-5 PST)

Water Wells For Africa

Current Projects

Here are some of the projects we’re working on right now.

Some of these are in early stages of completion and others are almost done.

To help accelerate our work and get these completed you can donate here.

Mkwanda VillageMay 20, 2019Mkwanda Village, T/A Ngokwe, Machinga Mkwanda has 42 households or families. There are 7 other villages that utilize the current water source with a total of 87 households. When the new borehole is hopefully installed in this village area, 142 families are expected to benefit from it with a population of around 600 people. The next borehole from this village is 2.5 kms or 1.6 miles away. Following are negative aspects of their current situation: The current water source is too far and unsafe. During the dry season, people must step into the pond to draw the water. This year alone, 7 people have suffered from waterborne diarrhea. There was a cholera outbreak two years ago. Women skip farming due to long lines waiting for water. The need for water is a priority that results in low crop yields and continual slavery to poverty. When the new borehole is installed, there will be reduced poverty as women will have time to participate in farming and community development. There will be reduced diarrhea cases and greater health. Families will have more time together rather than women and young girls spending more of their time finding and collecting water. Water source for Mkwanda Village Elina, 60 year-old woman from Mkwanda, carries her bucket of dirty water...
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Mwinkawa VillageMay 20, 2019Mwinkawa Village, T/A Ngokwe, Machinga Mwinkawa has 200 households and 4 surrounding villages. In total, the 4 surrounding villages have households totaling 631. If we can raise the funds to install a well, it will benefit 831 families, serving around 4,000 people. This is too many people to utilize one water well. Our recommendation is to install a new water well for each cluster of about 700 people, so we will work on installing more in this area. The next borehole is at a distance of 2 kms or 1.2 miles away. Difficulties these villagers currently face: School children are going very late to school. Last year, 4 people suffered from cholera and 2 people died of it. More than 10 people have already experienced diarrhea this year. Due to the long wait at the water source, families have had some problems. 3 families were divorced due to issues pertaining to water as the husbands were suspecting their wives of going out with other men and only pretending that they were getting water. 30 year-old Bertha Champion drawing contaminated water...
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Katete VillageMay 20, 2019Katete Village, T/A Ngokwe, Machinga Katete has 42 families and they share the current water source with 3 other villages that have 240 households. When the new borehole is installed, it is going to provide the first clean water for the 282 families and approximately 1,400 people. The next borehole is 1 km or about 3/4 of a mile away. Challenges with the current source of water are: Diarrhea. This year alone 20 people have suffered from it. 3 of the women interviewed by our team had diarrhea, too. During the dry season, people queue and wait up to 9 hours for one bucket of dirty water. Sometimes women quarrel as some try to sneak in front of the line. As a result of the long wait, their marriages become unstable as women cannot organize their home effectively. Children go late for school. Current water source in Katete...
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Khobwe VillageMay 20, 2019Khobwe Village, T/A Ngokwe, Machinga Khobwe has 57 families and is surrounded by 9 other villages with 100 households. If WWFA can raise the funds to install a water well here, there is a total of 157 households with a population of around 600 that would be expected to benefit from clean sustainable water. The next borehole is 1.5 kms or almost 1 mile away. The families of this area face the following issues: Most children get diarrhea and this causes class absenteeism. During this rainy season alone, there have been 40 waterborne diarrhea cases. During the dry season, they spend around 6 hours waiting for water and this makes women miss some community developmental works. They have killed several snakes at the water well. Waiting at the water hole plus the far distance to the school makes it impossible for young girls to attend school. 2 people did die approximately two years ago, due to diarrhea. Sick child...
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Ndambala VillageMay 13, 2019Ndambala Village, T/A Chikwewo. Ndambala has 47 households and there are seven other surrounding villages that draw from the current water well. Total number of families from the surrounding villages is 164. If the borehole is installed in this village, 211 families are going to benefit from it with a population of around 1,000 beneficiaries. The next borehole is at 5 kms or 3.1 miles away. Currently, the local people have to deal with the following issues: During the dry season, people do wait for about 3 hours at the current water source and because of this, most of the time women miss farming and school children miss classes and go late to school. During the rainy season, they have plenty of water but it is very unsafe as other waters and pollutants from the top soil is washed into their drinking water. Because of this, they have diarrhea and those affected are mostly children. Last year, three people suffered from cholera. Some years back, a chief lost his mother and sister in the same year due to diarrhea. Last year, one school girl was bitten by a snake as she was going early in the dark to fetch water before school. When the community is blessed with a water well, there is going to be reduced diarrhea cases. There will be good home hygiene practices and students are going to continue with their education, especially girls. Women collecting water at Ndambala Village water point...
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Swalele VillageMay 13, 2019Swalele Village, T/A Ngokwe, Machinga. Swalele has 150 families with a population of around 500 people. There are 20 villages in the surrounding area which use the same water source. If we are successful installing a water well, the surrounding 20 villages are going to use it. The 20 villages have 243 households in total and approximate population of 1,000 people. The nearest borehole is 3 kms or 1.9 miles away. Existing challenges today: During the dry season, they must wait a long time for their turn to draw one bucket of water. This delay causes women to fight or quarrel as they struggle for the limited source of water. They go to draw water at 4 AM and they return at 10 AM. This disrupts home organization; it brings some marriage problems; students go very late to school, especially girls. More than 20 people have suffered from diarrhea this year alone and mainly children. Five people suffered from dysentery this year. This year, three people were bitten by snakes as they were going to the current water source. Two people died in October of 2018 due to diarrhea. A woman from Swalere village drinking water from an unsafe source. Two women from Swalere village are headed for a long walk home....
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Mmanja VillageMay 13, 2019Mmanja Village, T/A Ngokwe, Machinga Mmanja has 15 families. Three other villages share the same water source. The surrounding villages have a total household number of around 95. If we are successful installing a water well here, it is expected to assist 110 households with approximately 550 people to be using it. The nearest borehole is 2 kms or 1.2 miles away. Currently, the local people are experiencing these difficulties: Diarrhea is often experienced, due to unsafe water. This year alone, around 30 people have suffered from diarrhea. Some children have dropped out of school and others go to school very late because of the long lines waiting at the shallow ditch to get water. There have been some family problems due to water scarcity. Husbands suspect the their wives were somewhere other than the water source due to long hours away from home waiting at the current polluted source. The long wait at the water source keeps the ladies from farming, a thing which is a main source of income for them so as a result, the circle of poverty continues. A group of women in Mmanja village drawing water from a shallow open swamp....
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Ling’ande VillageMay 10, 2019Ling’ande Village, T/A Ngokwe, Machinga This village has 80 family households totaling approximately 400 people. Their current source of water is a shallow ditch. Six villages in total use the current source of water and these are the villages that are going to be the beneficiaries of the new borehole, when it is installed. The next closest borehole is 3 kms or 1.9 miles away. The problems that the families face due to the current water source are: Frequent diarrhea. This year alone 5 people have suffered from diarrhea. During the dry season from April to November, they must wait in line a long time for the water and sometimes that must travel further in search of water. Students are very late to school due to the long wait at the water source queue. Dogs, livestock, and other wild animals share the same water with people. Last year 5 people suffered from cholera. Our team was also told, “Sometimes women do quarrel and fight for water especially during the dry season.” 28 year-old Dorothy from Ling'ande Village. She is drawing murky water and drinking from her scooper before carrying the bucket home. This is 32 year-old Magna. She is pregnant as she takes unsafe water and bending with her baby on her back, adding to the difficulty of drawing water....
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Thumba VillageMay 8, 2019Thumba Village, T/A Ngokwe, Machinga Thumba itself has 32 families and immediately surrounded by 7 villages with 54 families. We hope to be able to install a borehole. It would be expected to provide clean, safe and sustainable water to a total of 86 families of around 400 people. The nearest borehole is 3 km or 1.9 miles away. We learned the following by interviewing Thumba residents: They have a shallow pit as their current source of water. Of the 6 people we interviewed, 4 of them had diarrhea at that time. So far, 15 people have suffered from diarrhea this year. They share the water source with livestock and wild animals. Students sometimes don’t go to school due to lack of water or long wait at the water source. Sometimes families miss meals due to lack of water which can expose the children to malnutrition. Farming is also disturbed due to the same reasons above. During the dry season, they wait at the water source for approximately 5 hours. A new water well will bring clean water closer to the village and will be immediately accessible all day long....
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