In a distant valley lies a small green-colored water point, in the Mayanja swamp, so murky that one can barely see any reflection on the surface of the waters. A group of women gather water, others delicately balance large jerry cans on their heads to carry home. Residents explained that bellowing animals such as goats and cattle also gather at the edge of the swamp to quench their thirst. The water point is the nearest source for both residents and animals in Nakitoola village, even when it is heavily polluted. Access to clean water is critical in this area, yet needed so desperately amidst the community’s efforts to explore various options.
Vicky, one of the residents in the community explains: "When I wash using swamp water, the clothes turn out brown".
The Nakitoola Village is predominantly rural, with more than half of its residents engaged in agriculture. Coffee and maize are the dominant crops grown in the community. Though with the water crisis, crop production is extremely low: keeping residents in poverty. The community currently has one school, Blessing Junior School, with less than half of the children in the community registered for an education. Parents can not afford to pay the school tuition as they spend the little money they have on treating water-borne diseases like typhoid at the Nakitoola Health Center I. The community has places of worship like; Nakitoola Church of Uganda and the Ssebanda Catholic Church where community members gather to pray to God for the provision of a safe water source in their community. Clean water is an urgent need in the Nakitoola village. Bringing safe water means saving lives, helping children return to school, residents living healthy, and thriving as God intends.
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