Needs assessment visit

The other day we headed out to Baluwa village for a needs assessment visit. While this sounds like an impressive title for simple visit, it really means that we headed out to visit some of the villagers we work with and listened to what they had to say. After we wrote a report and now we have to figure out how to get funding to help them out. Pretty simple process really.

Anyways here is a copy of the report I knocked up last night.

Water Well Needs Assessment, Baluwa villages 30-07-12

Baluwa is located in Kavre district, Nepal. It is located on the plains at the bottom of a large valley and it the home to around 4000 people. The Baluwa area consists of many villages and is home to many different ethnic groups including marginalized castes such as Dunuwar, Magar, Kami, Sarki, Damai and Gurung. The main economic activity is subsidence farming of crops such as rice, potatoes and corn with the typical land size being less than one hectare per family. Some families will also raise livestock such as goats, buffalo and chickens to supplement their income.

The site of the current first well

One of the main problems facing Nepal as a whole and Baluwa in particular is access to safe, clean water. Most waterways are highly polluted and unsafe to drink. In the warm monsoon months the rivers flood and fill with contaminates and disease. As Baluwa is located at the bottom of a valley, many water sources are tapped by other villages further up the hills, leaving very little options for the people of Baluwa. One common method is to locate either a spring or underground stream and construct a well or, in some cases a deep bore. This underground water is free from contaminates and disease.

Collecting water from the spring

In Baluwa we visited 2 sites that are in need of water systems. They are all located in Baluwa area 5 and area 6. The first in Baluwa – 5 is located near to a main village area, close to a school and Co-operative building. Currently there is one well used by 5 surrounding villages, serving a local population of over 1000 people. Some people walk an hour each way to collect water. During the rainy months there is a strong flow of clean water, however in the cold winter months the flow dries up to a trickle, leaving people to wait many hours for their turn to fill their water containers and begin the carry home. Water is rationed severely during these times. Some young girls miss out on their education as they are kept home from school to help collect water daily. The local women’s co-operative group has requested our help to build a well closer to their village, enabling them to have year round access to clean water. They have identified a small spring located minutes from the village and estimate that a bore depth of 60 feet will be sufficient for year round supply.

Begining the carry home

The second site is located in Baluwa-6. It serves a group of 150 houses ( approximately 900 people) located off the main track. There is one private well in use by 20 of the houses but due to scarcity of water the others must collect water from the local stream. Currently the villagers use a small spring that feeds into the stream as the stream is unsuitable for drinking. The spring provides good clean water but it is prone to being destroyed by flooding due to its close location to the stream. This means these villagers must walk to the next village over to collect water during times of flood.  It also has a very small flow and people can have long waits there also during morning and evening peak times. During the winter the spring dries up completely leaving the villagers with no choice but to collect water from a dam site in the stream. The villagers have located an excellent site for a well. There is clean groundwater available and it is estimated that a depth of 60 feet will provide safe, clean water year round.