In the long-time planning of the school there was always considered to dig a borehole, first however only to supply the students and teachers with drinking water. But our local partner ensured us that already during the construction period the direct accessibility of water would make work much easier. Moreover the easier access to clean drinking water would mean a tremendous improvement of the inhabitants’ situation.
Therefore in 2016 a borehole for drinking water was dug, equipped with an electric submersible pump. However the building enterprise made a big mistake and that’s why shortly afterwards caving sand congested the pump and the borehole was impossible to run.
We couldn’t draw the enterprise to responsibility, by now they are insolvent, and that’s why we had to start from zero. We all agreed that a new borehole is absolutely necessary. But this time we applied for different grants. Through this it came to a delay till we finally decided to run the project on our own budget.
From this point our partners in Ghana took over. This was also the first official project of the newly founded “Northern Educational Alliance” (NEA), our partner NGO.
The biggest challenge already came up at the beginning of the project. It was sitting for the right place to dig. Therefor several geological surveys were conducted for different sites. Tamale and the surrounding area, to which Saguli belongs is well known for the low lying groundwater line and this was also a problem we had to face when drilling the first borehole.
For the contract of the drilling we made a bid and Terrahydro Associates LTD. was the company which finally won among three drilling companies. They began drilling on the 13th of January 2018. The expectations were very high und therefore many inhabitants came to watch the work. Among the people present at the drilling site where the chairman for NEA and his Executives, the chief of Saguli and some of his elders, the Assembly member of the area and cross section of the youth and women of the community. The joy and the relief were enormous when finally at approximately 80 metres depth water was hit. The work delayed for another month because the contractor had to fetch mechanizing material from the national capital. However on the 28th of February 2018 the project was successfully completed.
From now on the borehole is available as a source of drinking water for the inhabitants. It is run by a fuel driven generator. A specifically founded water committee composed of the community members will care for its running costs as well as the maintenance of the borehole. As soon as the school is completed the borehole should be primarily used by the students.
We and the community members of Saguli are highly pleased about the successful completion of the project which will significantly improve the local situation. Even if it is just a small step, it is a step towards the right direction.