Oct 31. 2014. Monitoring Boreholes

My lodge is quite new one, and construction laborers have been still laying bricks in the other compounds. The good thing is that the office is almost next to this lodge. I can walk there within 2 minutes. Sun rises early in Choma, Zambia. I went to the office in the morning, at 6:30am. Soon enough, Zambia WASH (ZWASH) in Southern region manager, Dorothy, arrived and said “Hi!” to me. 

“Wow, you came so early!” said to Dorothy. 
“Yes, because I will go to the field for monitoring boreholes at 7am.”

I thought for a while, and said to her, “I want to go there too!”
She also for a while, and said to me, “Okay!”

We waited for Mbeza MDP manager, Nathan, and we actually departed at 8:30am. Mbeza ADP was 1-hour distance by driving from ZWASH office. We looked around 5 boreholes, and ventilated improved pit (VIP) latrines in that area to ensure the maintenance. In every place, community members and committee for boreholes greeted us. The community that has a good case of managing a borehole has a fee collection system to repair it, had a fence around it, and a soak pit was connected to drain water in the distance. 

When we were talking with committee members around the borehole, people frequently came here to draw water. Then, they pumped the handle to pour water into a water jar and carried it on their head. Some people were drinking water at this place. Even animals, cows and birds, were enjoying drinking water that came from boreholes. I looked around the borehole. It was a dusty area with dry weather from every quarter, and I could not even see the evidence of a drop of water besides borehole area. This borehole must be like a place of heaven, oasis, to every household. Once again, I realized the preciousness of water. 

While Dorothy and Nathan were pointing out something that should be improved, I could say nothing because they spoke in Tonga, the Southern province language. Since I have been moving around so many places since last June, I have already lost my interest to learn foreign languages. A ma’am greeted me “아부가부티! (How are you?) in Tonga so I said “I’m good!” in English. Then, everyone laughed. 

It was a hot day, and I was quickly exhausted. Staff work during half-day on Friday, and we went back around 3pm. It was a good experience for me to see how community people actually use boreholes in a daily basis and maintain it.