Mutune Primary School: Girls Can Do Hard Things

Mutune Primary Girls School, located in Kitui County, Kenya, stands as an educational haven for 600 students, half of whom are full-time boarders. However, the school faces a pressing water challenge, as it relies on the seasonal and untreated water from a nearby river. This water source is not only inconsistent but also vulnerable to surface contamination, posing potential health risks to the school community. The well-being and education of these bright young minds hinges on access to clean and reliable water.

Boarding in Kenyan Schools

Many students in Kenya board where they attend school. This can be for many reasons, but when students live on their school’s property it’s usually for safety and security reasons. With clean water at Mutune, it will not only benefit students during the day as they stay hydrated and eat lunch made with clean water, it will also change how boarded students live their daily lives. They’ll have access to clean water for bathing, drinking, and living. Disease rates decrease by 68% with access to clean water! Clean water truly changes communities.

Their Previous Water Source

Curently, Mutune students and community members have been collecting untreated water from a nearby river. They had to turn to this method of collecting water due to previously having a unreliable/ untreated rainwater system and a hand pump that has broken and been abandoned by the original implementors.

Because Mutune students have had to walk for water, they have missed school, been more susceptible to illnesses, and put in harm’s way. In 80% of Kenyan households, women and children are tasked with collecting water, which means everything else comes after, including education. When clean water is available on a school property, education rates increase by 34%, and 58% for girls specifically! AND for every additional year a girl is in school, her future income increases by 12%. Clean water is the building block of life, and education is a very close second.

The Hidden Global Water Crisis

Unfortunately, too many times have communities told us the same story, that an organization came in, gave them a system, and it broke down a year later, never to be fixed again. Actually, 60% of clean water projects fail after the first year in East Africa; this is the Hidden Global Water Crisis. Now that we are partnered with Mutune, this will not happen to them again. Well Aware has a 100% success rate– our team of technical experts, our community driven approach, our use of new technologies, and our ongoing maintenance will ensure this model continues succeeding. To ensure their continued growth and success, it is essential to implement sustainable solutions and extend support to Mutune Primary Girls School. By rallying behind them, we can pave the way for a brighter and healthier future, where every child’s right to education and clean water is upheld.

Girls Can Do Hard Things

We are honored to be a women-led international organization and we understand firsthand how important it is to enable students, especially young girls in these developing regions. Imagine your 6 year old daughter wakes up for school, but realizes there is no water so she puts her sandals on, grabs a 5 gallon jerry can, and begins her journey to find water that day, not knowing what might cross her path. Because of this task, she misses school and misses an important lesson on mathematics. And then this repeats the next day and the next, eventually leading to her dropping out of school, halting her dreams for the future. This is the reality for so many girls in developing regions, including Mutune Primary School, and what we are aiming to change. Girls can do hard things, we know this, but girls can do harder things with clean water. We are honored to bring Mutune Girls Primary School clean water this summer.

Learn more about our Water Projects here.