Margaret Nakapwan: 'I knew the greatest challenge the students were facing was lack of water.' Photo: Grace Kamuyu/Tearfund
July 2012
When Margaret Nakapwan saw clean water flowing from taps provided by Tearfund, she could hardly believe her eyes.
‘We were so happy and couldn’t stop thanking God for the great miracle that he had done for us,’ said Margaret, who lives in Nyagaita, Kenya.
As headmistress of the local primary school, she had double cause for celebration. For years she had been frustrated that the education of the children was being disrupted by the need to get water.
Parents would often pull their children out of school and send them to fetch water which and gradually led to the school roll dropping from 60 to just 15.
‘I always knew that the greatest challenge that the students were facing was the lack of water,’ said Margaret. ‘Water is everything.’
Kenya’s drought made matters far worse: ‘All of a sudden the rivers dried up and there was no water anywhere.’
Margaret admits the drought pushed her faith to the limit and nearly led her to close the school for good.
Less illness
The arrival of Tearfund partner CRWRC and the start of work on a borehole was a massive fillip for the entire community. It meant residents would be better placed to cope if drought hit again.
‘You cannot believe the extent of my joy when I saw clean water flowing from the taps,’ says Margaret.
Suddenly lives changed; children could now attend school and were less susceptible to illness.
‘All in all, I’m grateful to all who have contributed to the project. You have changed the lives of these children and given them a chance to be great men and women of this community.’
John Lokai, vice-chairman of the local water committee trained by CRWRC to manage the borehole, echoes her sentiments: ‘This water has greatly changed lives here.
‘People here know and understand the value of this precious commodity, no one has been seen wasting water.
‘I’m very grateful for the training that Tearfund working with CRWRC gave us to help us in owning and managing the project.'