Buey Tut, who recently visited Mesa West Rotary, shared the following from Aqua Africa's first-quarter newsletter:
The Aqua-Africa team in Omaha concentrated hard to decipher the static and crackle-laced words of Country Director Beatrice Safari. “We have prepared all the materials and will be departing in the morning,” repeated Beatrice, struggling with poor phone reception in one of South Sudan’s remote areas. Along with the drilling team, Beatrice was departing from Aqua-Africa’s South Sudan compound in Nzara, to five nearby villages of Sakure, Ringasi, Yabua, Nakappo and Yabongo to construct five hand-pump wells.
On January 28th, Beatrice and her drilling team were given a gracious welcome by the Yabongo village residents, complete with traditional dancing and prayers. This warm welcome has become the pattern with all five villages. Despite its festive nature, however, the welcome was meant to express the community’s desperate need for clean drinking water. Prior to the drilled water wells, all five villages were forced to depend on rivers, ponds, and rain for their drinking water.
Funded through Rotary International’s Global Grant program, the mission is the collaborative effort of Aqua-Africa, Episcopal Diocese of Iowa, Wausau Rotary of Wausau Wisconsin, and Juba Rotary. After four plus years of delays having to do with the country’s ongoing conflict and related challenges, the successful completion of this project brings Juba Rotary to good standing and able to accept future Global Grants.
In addition to serving 2,500 people, this mission also oversaw the successful implementation of the organization’s MicroDemocracy and maintenance training programs. MicroDemocracy saw 250 participants in the election process and 15 elected
water committee members while 12 individuals were given maintenance orientation training by the drilling team. “What can I say? Water is life. Thank you,” said Mobma, of Ringasi village.