8-year-old Gisele can now quench her thist

Gisele Uwarugira used to be thirsty at while at school, but she could only go to a nearby water point to quench her thirst two times a week when the thirst became unbearable for her. Now, the picture looks completely different for the 8-year-old girl: World Vision, in partnership with the school and nearby communities and parents, has supplied clean water to Gisele’s school, the Gasenyi Primary School of Bukirasazi commune in Gitega province, in the centre of Burundi.

Gisele did not go to the nearby water point every day, though she was thirsty, just because the water point was too far away from her school. The fifteen minutes break time were not sufficient for her to go and come back on time, she explains. At her age, she was not quick enough to reach the water source ahead of others and quench her thirst. Older children had to run as quickly as possible and queue at the water source as it was the only place where water was available. Some students would come back to school late. Now Gisele can quench her thirst at ease from water that World Vision in partnership with the communities brought to her school. Communities offered their lands where are constructed water points. They also participated in protecting the water points by constructing fences around them to prevent animal to spoil the water sources. 12-year-old Rachelle Nsabiyera, a grade 3 student at the same school, appreciates that the water supplied has relieved her from the burden of carrying water from home, or collecting it from the closest water source. School authorities requested children to bring water from their homes to school to clean the school three times a week at least depending on how clean classes are. Before the new water supply source was constructed at school, time management was a big issue for the school authorities. Children would spend much time collecting water and cleaning classrooms, Josias Nimpenda, school headmaster explains. To ensure that the water supply construction is sustainable, parents have come together to form a water committee which is in charge of collecting money from community members in the nearby, which is kept in a fund that will be used to afford repair if needed, or to fix any issue that might arise hindering the water to flow. School authorities on their side have started meeting parents of children attending Gasenyi Primary School to jointly plan on constructing more toilet blocks as children keep increasing at their school to keep them away from diseases caused by lack of hygiene. The available water has increased school time and children’s hygiene, the headmaster testifies and thanks World Vision for its support.