Hi, my name is Makena and I am going to be 5 years old.  I live with my mom and my brother and go to school every day.. I miss not being able to go to school.  I miss my friends and I really miss playing with them. We walked by the school last week and saw some bright yellow bottles outside.  When I asked my Mom, she said that if the school opened again we would all have to be very careful to wash hands often and the bottle was put there to make that easier. My Mom said that I couldn't drink the water from bottle because it had cleaner in it for our hands. Then she said that it was Lifewater who was putting the bottles by the school. I remember how exciting it was to get our new well and I really like that I don't have to carry my bucket so far now every morning now.

So my Mom and I would like to thank you for helping us and trying to keep us safe and healthy

Makena  

The global impact of this pandemic reminds us that we are truly living in a global village. Our “neighbour” is no longer just the person living next door, but includes everyone, everywhere.

We cannot disconnect ourselves from the plight of women and girls who can't socially distance as they draw water from crowded pumps; and we cannot ignore children who can’t frequently wash their hands because water takes so much time to fetch.

Lifewater Canada’s response to the COVID-19 outbreak began in February. Work in Kenya began before there were any reported cases there and includes distributing masks, sharing hygiene information, providing disinfectant solution, and building hand washing stations at orphanages, churches and clinics. Work carries on to repair broken pumps and build new drinking water sources to reduce crowding at existing water points.

In Kenya, a critical concern was the operation of schools. One of the key messages people in North America and Europe are told is "wash you hands... often and well". Schools in the Nakuru region of Kenya were mostly build following independence in the 1960's. Classrooms are small and crowded. In these conditions, hand hygiene is critical.

The Lifewater Kenya Ltd. brought COVID-19 safety workshops to local schools. They were told that the main problem was lack of handwashing facilities. This was important for children transitioning from home to school and for children who have just used the latrine-type toilet facilities.

In response to this need, Lifewater worked with school Principals and staff to build and install handwashing stations. 

These handwashing stations were monitored and maintained by school caretakers. Masks were provided to Caretakers to reduce risk of COVID transmission as they filled the wash tanks and make sure that children are washing their hands effectively.

Schools in Kenya were all closed by the end of March, but the handwashing stations remain in-place for when control measures ease and school resumes again.

Thank-you for caring enough to share to help flatten the COVID curve in Africa where medical facilities lack the capacity to treat large numbers of seriously ill people.