Spotlight: Rwanda Water Project

In 2008, following the deaths of hundreds of people in Rwanda from contaminated water, the organisation 20 Liters partnered with local churches and World Relief Rwanda to improve access to clean water in the most vulnerable communities in the rural district of Bugesera. Today the initiative has grown, under the name Rwanda Water Project, to serve a population of 59,249 people. The Project Manager, Mr Leon Victor Mushumba (a Galilee Institute graduate) heads a team of 5 permanent staff members and 72 volunteers.

The project aims to improve water quality using Sand and Membrane (SAM) Filters and to improve water source access with Rainwater Harvesting Systems (RHS). By installing RHS in churches and SAM filters in local schools, health centres, hospitals and individual homes, they have provided access to quality water in both the domestic and public spheres. The project also invests in community education to improve health and hygiene practices.

Why '20 Liters'?

In transitional counties, 20-litre yellow jerry cans are commonly used for collection, storage and transport of water. Millions of women and children spend several hours a day collecting water from distant and often polluted sources such as rivers, swamps and even mud puddles. As a result, the water collected is contaminated, dirty and unsafe for drinking.

The jerry can has come to symbolise those who do not have access to clean water and the fight for providing clean water 20 Liters at a time.

According to the organisation’s website, 20 litres a day from a source within 1 kilometre of the household is the minimum requirement per person per day by the World Health Organisation for adequate drinking and personal hygiene. However, for the household residents to also bathe and wash laundry they require at least 50 litres/day. Despite the establishment of new water infrastructures, access to water is still a challenge for the project and community. “Rain water harvesting tanks are not able to meet the required level of water demand for community needs,” explains Mr. Mushumba, “resulting in the continuation of use of unclean water from swamps, rivers and lakes.”

New Solutions

When he attended Galilee Institute’s Integrated Water Resources Management programme in 2016, Mr Mushumba saw how clean water is harvested in an environment with far less rainfall than Rwanda. During a study tour to a water reservoir at the Golan Heights, he was inspired. “Creation of a clean water reservoir can not only be easily applied in the Bugesera region, but it can also provide the much needed water supply solution for the region,” he told us.

“I received knowledge which helped me in the restructuring of the Project,” says Mr. Mushumba. “We are suggesting new activities for the Water Project, including the construction of reservoirs and establishing water committees at the village level. All those initiatives have been well received by our donors and we hope that by next year, in 2017, we will begin to implement those.”