It has been said that “water is life and sanitation is dignity”, but the residents of Mukuru Slum in Nairobi, Kenya, including our own students at the Dorothy Schwartz Community Centre, have had limited access to clean water…until now! Our board member Harris Goldstein has been working for months, along with DSCC Sponsorship Coordinator, Isaac Okumu, to bring clean water to hundreds of children of the Dorothy Schwartz Community Centre and to their families in Mukuru. LWCF is proud to announce that this new initiative has recently launched, and thanks to the work of Harris and Isaac, as well as the generosity of our donors, the students of DSCC, their families, and some of houses in the community surrounding the school now have access to clean water.
LWCF recently purchased 15 water filters and 100 water storage buckets for the school from Acme Containers. The water is filtered by an interior ceramic candle, which removes all water born diseases, including Typhoid and Cholera. Throughout the school day, water is filtered and stored in the buckets, and clean water is then brought home with students and their families, as well as to selected homes surrounding the school. Upon receiving the filters in early August, a representative from Acme Containers visited the school and taught the DSCC team how to correctly use the equipment.
Although this amazing project is only in its pilot stages, it is already making a huge impact in these children’s lives! Access to clean water provides immediate health and sanitation benefits and brings dignity to the lives of children and families living in a challenging environment. As Isaac Okumu, DSCC Sponsorship Coordinator has said: “The Mukuru Slum has a population of over half a million people with very limited access to clean water, sanitation, education and medical facilities. Crime, drugs, prostitution, rape and many other vices are the order of the day.” This small act of bringing clean water to the students and families of DSCC has a direct impact on their day to day lives. Thank you to all who have helped make this initiative happen. We hope to see it grow in the years to come.
MORE RESOURCES
- How Nairobi River Lost its Pollution Battle – Illustrates how the Nairobi River is polluted as it makes its way through Mukuru Slums and the importance of providing clean water to this community.
- Growing up in Mukuru slum, Nairobi: in photos – Illustrates life and water challenges in Mukuru.
PHOTO GALLERY – MUKURU SLUMS CLEAN WATER INITIATIVE
