Two simple steps - it's as easy as that

Phase 1 Community Wide Project

We begin our work by selecting a community and using the village primary school as our access point. Here is where we begin introducing Rain Water harvesting to a community. When we enter the selected village, we come empty handed, armed only with our knowledge of harvesting the rain. We interview all the parents of students to collect data on issues like health, location of current water resources, time spent walking for water, sanitation and whether or not families boil water before consuming it. The village then elects the best masons and laborers to become our core construction crew for the building of a large scale rain catchment system on the primary school. We employ this crew for the duration of the project. Once completed, these systems provide the entire community with access to clean water. The tank construction process we use is so cost effective and so simple, yet it is a new method to the local masons.

We also help them democratically elect committees for water and the school farm. We work with the water committee on governance, maintenance and the implementation of a phase 2 project. We work with the farming committee on passive irrigation techniques and surface water collection. This ensures that the school has a farm that produces enough food to feed the students everyday.

Estimated cost - $15.00 per villager Estimated time - 6 weeks

Phase 2 Women’s Water Initiative

The WWI involves teaching women to build 5000 liter Rain Catchment Systems on their homes. We have a Tanzanian woman farmer that teaches clusters of women to construct these systems. Each of these systems cost about $250.00 USD in materials. The systems are funded through a "Pay it forward loan program.” Each of the women involved will be responsible to recruit 5 additional women into the program and teach them the technology. As each of the initial participants begins to repay their loan, additional loans are funded. The community votes on the repayment terms as it is determined by their capabilities. The starting capital is never returned to the investor, but rather cycled through the community until every household has a Rain Catchment System. Within a series of loan cycles, all of the residence in the communities will have access to clean water at home. The local water committee manages the repayment process and Save the Rain audits it monthly. Cash is never given out as the projects begins instead, materials are delivered as each home project begins. All the procurement of materials are done by Save the Rain and distributed to the women as they begin to construct the systems.

Estimated time: determined by repayment terms

Estimated cost: $250.00 per woman enrolled

70 000 gallon Rain Catchment System on
Namballa Primary School

_____________________________________________

The first residential Rain Catchment System in the Women's Water Initiative - Kikwe, Tanzania