Residents of three parishes in Wakiso district now have access to piped water thanks to initiatives designed to promote sanitation and hygiene.
The areas of Kavule, Mwerere and Wambaale, all located along Matugga-Semuto road, in Gombe division all had challenges to access water, sanitation facilities and hygiene facilities. Their residents have been fetching water from contaminated swamps and distant boreholes.
However, this sad state of affairs has come to an end after the Rotary Clubs of Wobulenzi and Muyenga constructed a solar-powered piped water system with an additional four public taps through a Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) global grant worth 300 million Shillings.
The clubs together with partners from Rotary Clubs of Calgary in Canada and Vienna International in Austria also constructed water harvesting tanks in ten schools. They also constructed toilets in three schools.
Florence Nassanga Musoke, the President of the Rotary Club of Wobulenzi said that over 10,000 residents in the three parishes now have access to clean water and will make a small contribution towards the sustainability of the project. She added that the project will not only reduce diseases but conflicts among families and children as women delay at sources waiting for water.
On Monday, the Rotary 9213 District Governor John Magezi Ndamira commissioned the project at Kiweebwa trading centre and said this will help to address, among others, loss of time to chase for clean from distant boreholes as well as risks faced by the girl child.
Ndamira explained that Rotary has so far invested over USD 500,000 in the projects in Wakiso district and challenged local leaders to join efforts to contribute to the Foundation so that more residents benefit.
Area residents welcomed the project as a timely intervention. Godfrey Nkuba of Kavule parish said that residents were depending on dirty water from the swamps and this had contributed to expenses related to treating water-borne diseases. Other residents say they have been sharing water with animals whereas others go days without water during drought season.
Rotarians have since handed over the management of the project to the residents united under KAMWEWA Rotary Community Corps to oversee its sustainability.
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