Underway

Community Description
Nong Gae School serves students from four small villages in rural Northeast Thailand. The area of these villages comprises roughly 165 households, nearly all of which rely on rice farming for their primary income.

These villages are connected to the outside world by gravel roads, and their rice-based income makes them heavily reliant on good weather for their livelihood. In a region that is often plagued by droughts and floods, the people have had to deal with many bad years and often must depend on secondary occupations, such as raising mushrooms or weaving silk, or must travel away from home and work as hired labor in more fertile regions.

Still, these communities have a strong dedication to the education of their children and to Nong Gae School. Recently the school was able to raise enough money from community member donations to build a new one-room kitchen so that the students’ meals could be prepared under more sanitary conditions.

Parents and community leaders also come to meetings to help plan the school’s future and for holiday celebrations and other activities that the school holds.

Over 200 people live in Nong Gae Village, and the combined usage of preparing meals, washing clothes, using restrooms, watering gardens, etc. uses so much of the water supply that by the time the pipes reach the school, a fully-opened water spout often merely drips.

In recent months community members donated to the school once again to help build a water tower on the school grounds. Currently the school shares a single water tower with the nearby Nong Gae Village, but this water source is simply not enough to supply both the village and the school.

Project Description
This project is to build a new water tower for the school, and connect it to the piping that already runs through the school.

The community has already raised about $1,500, and, under the direction of the school staff, the project was started. The metal structure of the tower and four large water tanks to hold the water have already been purchased and are sitting in the schoolyard, waiting for the rest of the materials so that they can be put up.

Project funds will be used to purchase the necessary materials and equipment. These include concrete for the foundation, a pump to get water up to the tower, and PVC pipes and metal beams to support the structure.

Project Impact
This project will benefit 268 people, including the 60 people who spend their day at Nong Gae School and the 208 villagers living nearby, who will gain better access to water (since they will no longer be competing with the school for limited resources).

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Beau Gambold

Comments
With the new water tower, students and staff at the school will have abundant drinking water, as well as be able to prepare meals, wash hands and dishes, use the restrooms and water the school’s garden without having to wait for water to drip slowly out.

It is often seen that an extremely necessary project remains dormant for lack of a small amount of money to complete it. This is a great example of how a project by a dedicated community can be enabled.

Dollar Amount of Project
$500.00

Donations Collected to Date
$500.00

Dollar Amount Needed
$0.00 - This project has now been fully funded, through the generosity of Six Senses Resorts & Spas as a part of their Clean Water Projects initiative.

We encourage others to continue to donate using the Donate button below, and we will notify Peace Corps Volunteer Beau Gambold of your donation. Additional funds will be used to fund the next project by Beau and/or those of his counterpart PCVs in Thailand.

Community Description
Nemba is located in the mountainous Northern Province of Rwanda. Tucked in the Nemba valley and surrounded by mount Kabuye, Nemba is a cool and beautiful place to live.

Nemba is also a major trading hub for agriculture products such as pineapple and Maracuja (passion fruit), and is a major coffee production area. This makes Nemba a vibrant area with dense population, housing a dynamic market that is open two days a week bringing people from all hill tops and other valleys.

This community is served by several health centers and one district hospital. One of these health centers is Nemba Health Center. The center serves a population catchment of over 34,000 people with average daily visits of 140 patients.

The health center provides essential services to the surrounding population, including general consultation services for children and adults, vaccination, maternal care, family planning, voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) of HIV/AIDS, a nutrition program, health education, and wound care.

In addition, the health center provides laboratory tests, pharmacy services, and supports a network of community health workers who work closely with the community to sensitize the population on health related issues and draw them to utilize the health facility.

The health center is well run by a competent titulaire (director) and a qualified set of staff for each of the main services. PCV Ahmed Naguib has initiated programs to teach staff on the use of computers and electronic tools for daily activities, and improving quality of work, staff efficiency and satisfaction.

The facility recently acquired a new laboratory facility to conduct a wider range of lab tests improving patient quality of care. Despite recent renovations of the existing facilities with added patient waiting area and a renovated wound care space, many other areas including sanitation continue to be inadequate, and pose risk to the health center staff, patients, and the surrounding environment alike.

While the Nemba health facility enjoys a reliable source of electricity and running water, it lacks in sanitation conditions. Currently, waste water from the laboratory and the consultation rooms empty into a ditch that runs onto the dirt road behind the health center. Rainwater runoff and water used for hospital cleaning are also added into the mix.

The current conditions pose health risk to the patients, pedestrians, surrounding community, and the environment as a whole, especially from waste water from the lab, with dyes and contaminated samples.

Project Description
This project is to construct a septic tank that will collect waste water in a contained and hygienic environment. The underground tank will be built using local materials and local skilled and unskilled labor.

Project funds will be used to purchase materials, such as stones, gravel, sand, cement, bricks, covers, and hardware, and to pay labor costs.

The health center is contributing 15% of the project funds.

Project Impact
18,000 residents of area surrounding health center will benefit from the project.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Ahmed Naguib

Comments
This project remediates a dangerous health hazard that calls for rapid action. This simple and cost-effective solution isolates the contaminants and protects the community at large.

Dollar Amount of Project
$500.00

Donations Collected to Date
$0.00

ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW

Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you "naming rights", if that is something you would like.

Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.

Dollar Amount Needed
$500.00

Community Description
Gouniang is a rural community located 250 km northeast of Tambacounda, 15 km southeast of Bakel, and 3 km from border of Mauritania. It consists of approximately 1000 residents, most of whom are descendants of the Pulaar ethnic group.

The village participates in subsistence farming, and does an admirable job at reaching food needs during the short rainy season.

There is a recently-completed NGO-funded water dam, enabling a longer farming period in a community-shared field close to the village.

The Peace Corps has been present since 2002, with a succession of sustainable agriculture volunteers. The volunteers have participated in Peace Corps Senegal's seed distribution program, which gives improved varieties of local staple crops to villagers with hopes of creating an improved, sustainable seed collection in the village.

The village also boasts a highly-successful women's community garden which produces admirable amounts of vegetables and field crops in the corresponding seasons.

There is a well already in place in the garden, which serves the hectare- sized area for the approximately 70 women who maintain plots.

Some time ago, a hand pump had been installed in the well, enabling the women to fill a large cement basin for easy access to water for the garden. The pump has since fallen into disrepair, and is no longer functional.

Project Description
This project is to repair the pump and restore the water supply used for irrigation in the women’s community garden.

Project funds will be used to purchase the necessary parts, including a new chain and pump handle. The repair work will be done by skilled local workers.

Project Impact
This project will directly benefit about 300 people, composed of the 70 women who work in the garden and their families who live in 50 households. The entire community of 1000 people will indirectly benefit through the availability of fresh fruit and vegetables raised in the garden.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Ethan McClelland

Comments
The simple repair of the nonfunctional pump restores the well to full usefulness for the benefit of the community.

The project will greatly reduce the work needed to provide water for the crops raised in the community garden. It will make the garden much more productive for the families participating.

Dollar Amount of Project
$400.00

Donations Collected to Date
$400.00

Dollar Amount Needed
$0.00 - This project has now been fully funded, through the generosity of Six Senses Resorts & Spas as a part of their Clean Water Projects initiative.

We encourage others to continue to donate using the Donate button below, and we will notify Peace Corps Volunteer Ethan McClelland of your donation. Additional funds will be used to fund the next project by Ethan and/or those of his counterpart PCVs in Senegal.

Community Description
Soldanesti is a small town situated in a valley in northeastern Moldova. The scenic location is surrounded by a forest and vistas of rolling hills.

According to census data, this district capital consists of 6,278 residents and is the commercial center for the 32 surrounding villages.

The community's main source of income is centered on local entrepreneurship through the town market and local businesses. The latter are located in the center of town, which acts as a meeting point for residents.

Soldanesti residents experience many problems due to extreme poverty. These include poor sanitation, poor water infrastructure, domestic violence, and alcoholism. For the past few years, local government and community activists have worked endlessly to the improve conditions of their community.

The town sanitation department has been re-structured to meet residents' needs and a new social assistance center has been constructed to combat social issues.

Each week thousands of residents from Soldanesti and surrounding villages come to the center of the town to socialize and buy industrial and agricultural goods. Locally-grown fruits, vegetables and farm animals are sold in a central open-air market.

Although produce and other food products are sold here 7 days a week, the public and vendors have no access to clean water.

Project Description
The purpose of this project is to provide the center of town with access to a public running water supply. A gazebo-like space will be built in the center of Soldanesti, 75 ft from the market. Fixtures will be installed and connected to the public water supply and sewage systems.

The project plan has been approved by the district council office and will require a maximum of four weeks to complete.

An area 4 by 2.5 meters area has been selected for the project site, based on its proximity to the market entrance, where all fresh foods are sold, as well as its proximity to the underground water source that will be used for the project.

The space will include a tile base supporting a sink, water fountain, trash can and bench. The area will be shaded by a metal and plastic roof structure, but will otherwise be open-air.

Soldanesti’s Public Works Department will provide labor for the construction under the direction of Mayor Alexander Tinica and Public Works Department Manger Serafima Focsa.

Workers will install a 20 mm underground pipe from the water source to the project site, and connect it to the water fountain and sink.

A 50 mm drainage pipe will be installed and connected to the city drainage system.

Project Impact
7,000 people will benefit from this project.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Katherine Rose

Comments
This project will provide vendors and their customers with a sanitary environment in which to sell and buy fresh fruits and vegetables. It will give the citizens of Soldanesti the opportunity to wash their hands and food before eating as well as provide those working and shopping at the market with potable water.

Dollar Amount of Project
$500.00

Donations Collected to Date
$500.00

Dollar Amount Needed
$0.00 - This project has now been fully funded, through the generosity of Michael Adams, of Austin, Texas, USA. The project is dedicated in honor of Katherine Rose, the Peace Corps volunteer who gives so selflessly of her time.

We encourage others to continue to donate using the Donate button below, and we will notify Peace Corps Volunteer Katherine Rose of your donation. Additional funds will be used to fund the next project by Katherine and/or those of her counterpart PCVs in Moldova.