The YWCA of Kenya Creates a Safe Space for Women and Girls to Access Clean Water

In collaboration with H2O Energies, a group of volunteer Swiss engineers, and with additional funding through the World YWCA Power to Change Fund, the YWCA of Kenya is supporting the Koteyo Women’s Group, which started the Koteyo Water Project. Their project was first began in 1994 in the Nyagoleo sub location in the South Asembo District, which covers Nyagoleo and Ahono. It was intended to provide clean, accessible water to homes and in the schools but, until now, the water had been of poor quality.

The main goal of the project is to reduce the burden on women and girls from Nyagoleo and Ahono, by improving the access and availability of clean water for domestic and agricultural use. The project also aims to provide clean water to the community and to build latrines, thus improving health care, water management and sanitation. Though the project benefits the whole community, it will have the biggest impact on women as it will greatly reduce the burden previously placed on them to fetch water for their families. Women will now have more time to participate in activities that can enhance their livelihood and the livelihoods of their family and friends.

650 children from the Akoum and Rakombe Primary schools currently benefit from the Koteyo Water Project. Both of these schools lacked access to clean water and their sanitation facilities are basic. H20 Energies has provided the expertise and funding for the water filtering system, as well as for the construction of a water kiosk for the Rakombe Primary School. Additional funding was made possible through the World YWCA Power to Change Fund and the local government and local community provided labour and expertise to install the system. Hendrica Okondo, Programme Director for Africa and the Middle East, visited the two schools and she experienced first-hand how the water is pumped from the lake into a tank which is then treated and supplied to the school through the kiosk. “I was deeply concerned by the poor quality of the water and the challenges faced by the women and girls of Koteyo. They are responsible for improving the quality of the water, and they had tried every thing from boiling the water, to using chemical agents and filtering, and yet they continued to get water-borne diseases. As principal caregivers, the women often had to take the difficult decision of keeping their girls at home when someone in the household got ill. This affected their education and many girls were forced to drop out of school. The technical support provided by H2O will have a profound impact on the community of Koteyo and it will reduce the burden on women and girls,” said Hendrica.

The empowerment of women and girls can be achieved in many ways. Through the provision of water, one of the most important resources, the YWCA of Kenya has empowered women and girls in Kenya. The Koteyo Water Project is a shining example of how the Power to Change Fund and our partnerships with organisations who share our goals and vision can grow into a success and can provide empowerment and liberation for community women and girls.