Year 2017 Uganda

Purpose

Protect water resources affected by drought and storm run-off.

 

Climate Impacts

Kihigwa community members report the following impacts:

contaminated water sources

from worsening storm run-off

Increased prevalence

of water-borne diseases

Decreased water availability

due to extreme drought

Increased time

spent collecting water

Livelihood loss

due to crop declines and poor livestock health

Uganda-Protecting water resources-01
Uganda-Protecting water resources

Activities

Community Action Planning

Following a participatory appraisal, community members and project facilitators wrote a community action plan (CAP) for project implementation.

Surveying of water resources

Water resource engineers surveyed fourteen water sources to determine usage rates - and technical feasibility. Only those that benefited the community most were selected for repair.

Water source committees

users of each water source met to establish management plans, including a system of fee collection to fund future repairs

Improvement of water resources

Project facilitators developed plans to move agricultural activities away from water sources, build protective barriers around wells, plant native trees and shrubs to reduce sedimentation, and remove contaminants.

project outcomes

4 newly protected water sources

Community Action Plans (CAPS) developed for future resource protection

Water committees and fee collection systems established

33 women and 54 men involved in project planning and implementation

project design

Through a participatory rural appraisal, community mapping and development of seasonal calendars, the community of Kihigwa, with the help of a local Peace Corps volunteer, identified water insecurity as a critical climate change impact affecting community members. This project set out to repair existing wells and implement measures to protect four open springs from evaporation during droughts and contamination from increased storm runoff. The project also helps address other challenges identified by the community, including health issues, agricultural output and gender equity. Improvement of water resources will reduce water-borne illness, provide water for farm irrigation, and reduce the amount of time spent collecting and purifying water, a responsibility primarily shouldered by women.

Top: unprotected spring. Bottom: protected spring construction, repaired well