Nguni Boys Secondary School

Nguni Boys Secondary School is in Nguni village in Mwingi, in Kenya's Kitui County. The principal, Vincent Mutambo, says the school has worked very hard over the years to ensure its 355 students have enough water for their drinking and sanitation needs. Nguni is a boarding school, so the students need much more water than they would at a day school. ‘We plant trees," Vincent says. "That’s why this school looks like an oasis in the desert. We are the only school in the region that has tapped water directly from the river into our school. With that kind of effort, you would think we have water all the time." However, during the dry season, the river becomes very shallow and students and staff at the school become very thirsty. The only way to quench that thirst has been to buy water from local vendors for about $110 CAD each month -- very costly in a region where many families are trying to live on only $1 CAD a day. Lifewater Canada donors provided a solution recently by installing a system to harvest and store rainwater. The system, including a 10,000-litre storage tank and a handwashing station, are a very welcome answer to prayer, Vincent says. "We are saving $110 CAD which I am using to buy seedlings because we have the vision to have a greener environment. The students are drinking clean water and they have a permanent structure to wash their hands. Mostly, I believe my boys will never wake up one day and think they will fail to bathe because there isn't enough water. Lifewater Canada has already sorted that out. The future is bright. I and my team say a big thank you. May you be blessed."