Kanungu, West Uganda is close to our hearts. Not only is it where we source our Direct Trade coffee from, our mission as a company is to see the community of this region transformed.
That is why, Mt Atkinson Coffee is getting behind ‘Double the Water’ campaign by the Village Project.
Until the end of March, every dollar given to rain harvesting water tanks in Uganda will be doubled. A generous donor is willing to match all donations up to $10,000. This means that what is raised for the community of Kanungu will double in its impact for families who are in desperate need.
Ruths' Story:
Ruth (36) and her husband Tito (48) have five children live in a two roomed house in Nyakatoma village, Kanungu district. For the longest time, they have been collecting water from a local pond 35 minutes walk from their house. This pond is used by the entire community including as a water source for cows, ducks and chicken that different families rear. Children including Ruth and Tito’s also traditionally bathe from the same pond.
For Ruth however, her biggest fear had always been the risk of her, her husband or her children drowning while fetching water at the pond. This fear was not unfounded as Ruth had lost a relative who drowned at the pond when she had gone to fetch water. For Ruth and Tito, whenever they would have to send their 8 and 16 year old daughters to the pond, that fear always hovered over them.
It was a huge emotional relief when Ruth and Tito received the rainwater harvesting tank. ‘Every time any one of my girls would go to the pond, I would say a silent prayer for them’ – Ruth recounts. She acknowledges that while there have been other benefits including having more productive time on her hands to grow her poultry business, the assurance that her daughters don’t have to go to the pond to fetch water is her greatest joy.
The challenge to access water is not only unique to themselves, Ruth and Tito have welcomed their neighbours to also collect water from their tank. The community response has also been overwhelmingly positive with one particular incident best describing it. Two months into having the tank installed, one of the harvesting gutters got damaged affecting the flow of water into the tank. Neighbours came together and collected money to have the gutter replaced, and this camaraderie deeply humbled Ruth and her family. Ruth during our visit appealed to InPact to donate more tanks and even mentioned that she would gladly help register more households that have expressed this wish to her.
The goal of 'Double the Water' is to raise is to raise $20,000. This will see 50 families in Kanunugu get a rain harvesting water tank for their homes.
All donations over $5 are eligible for a tax credit. Which is great timing considering the 31st of March is just around the corner.
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