Mano Gieha community  is a growing community  with a population of 568 people only rely on the local swamp for water because there is no other water source in their village.The water in the swamp is yellow. There are frogs in the water and green leaves float on top. Children swim and villagers do laundry in the same water they collect to drink. Drinking contaminated water means community members and those they love suffer from water-related diseases as a result. Sadly, a recent severe cholera outbreak led to the loss of several relatives and immediate family in the community. Every day, individuals struggle to stay healthy, which impacts how much energy they can commit to building successful lives.

Coordinate of Mano Gieha Community

GPS Location of community: 8.0877279,-11.0993587
GPS of Current Water point; 8.0859287,-11.0882936
Wish water point: 8.0881145,-11.0993169

The People in Mano has been dealing with lack of good clean water and also with the disturbing problem of being stalked by a pack of wild dogs as they move about the community and travel through the forest to reach the swamp to collect water. It is not just a nuisance, it is also dangerous, causing many injuries and broken water buckets as people run away to escape.

Ibrahim Solo, 35, a local petty trader, said, “There are stray dogs all over the forest chasing people and causing damage on properties. This has made it hard for me to fetch water to prepare my business on time.”

Nyawa also shared how being the only person in her household to collect water weighs on her as she attempts to provide an income for her family. “It is always hard in this village to fetch water from the swamp to prepare my business. My children living with me are not strong enough, for now, to help me fetch water. I must do it alone every morning to prepare my business.”

Because of the threat of wild animals, students are unable to fetch water after school in the afternoon since they need to wait for their parents to arrive home from the family farm. “I fetch water from the swamp every day before and after school from Menika village (2 miles away). It is not easy to walk a far distance to attend school and return home after school to fetch water. This has been so hard on me every day because I make more than four trips for water every day and do other domestic works as well,” said Mahawa., age 15.

She continued, “I exhaust more of my time and energy on domestic activities including fetching water than reading my [school] reading at home.”

There is great fertile land for farming and lots of potential in Mano. More people would move to this community, but people are reluctant because there is no safe water source.

The project aims at addressing the key issues of unequal distribution and management of WASH service delivery in Mano Giaha Kenema District. It will scale up a sustainable and replicable integrated WASH program that has showed greater sustainability for the rural WASH development sector using SL- Pump system. By building local capacity in sustainable development, maintenance and management of essential WASH services.

The project intends to drill one (1) water well that could expand WASH service delivery and support the local people in meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for water and sanitation. The capacity of local youth will be built and promotion of equity between women and men, boys and girls in accessing and controlling facilities, services, skills and opportunities will be promoted. The project will specifically promote access to clean and safe water and sanitation services in the two communities.

It is expected that the project will directly benefit 568 people in Mano village. The project will promote effective hygiene promotion messages in the communities and institutional environments respectively.

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