Category: Hidden Crisis
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UPGro Hidden Crisis fieldwork done in partnership with WaterAid country teams and with full support of government ministries in Ethiopia, Malawi and Uganda, who adopted the survey reports [C8]
Research conducted in Uganda revealed the high rate of pump corrosion to the poorly galvanized iron pipes used for borehole installation. This has enabled WaterAid to deliver this message to the key stakeholders that can effect change to reduce the problem of corrosion. Presentations of research results in National working groups and coordination meetings at…
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UPGro evidence and approaches into a UNICEF guideline and an online course on drilling professionalisation, with WaterAid, UNICEF and UNHCR [C2]
UNICEF and UNHCR are major actors in global WASH, from high level policy to in-country implementation. Both have acknowledged challenges with drilling good quality boreholes that can supply communities and refugee camps safely and sustainably. Good practice guidelines, developed by Skat Foundation (UPGro Knowledge Broker) and UNICEF were reinforced by the evidence and methods emerging…
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UPGro Impact: responding to declining groundwater levels in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia [D5]
Addis Ababa relies on groundwater for more than 60% of its water supply. Water levels are declining significantly. Declining water levels is affecting access to water for some users. Rapid water level decline has led to some shallow community boreholes equipped with handpumps to fail. Old wells fields (e.g. The Old Akaki wellfield) tapping the…
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UPGro Impact: Ministry of Water & Environment, Uganda issues new directive and guidance on handpump materials, and suppliers respond [D2]
Background The SDGs aim for universal access to safely managed water services – a hugely ambitious target for many African countries. In 2015, only 25% of the population of sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) had access to safely managed water services, and the majority (34%) remain reliant on basic services [1]. In SSA, basic services (typically community…
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UPGro Science: Bacteriological contamination of groundwater is likely to be a significant barrier to achieving safely managed water services under SDG6, but this can be tackled by improved construction practices [S7]
In rural areas, around 70% of working handpumps surveyed across in Uganda, Malawi and Ethiopia provided good quality water, with only 9% affected by chemical contamination (fluoride, arsenic, nitrate). 21% were affected by bacteriological contamination
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UPGro Science: New methods of water point functionality developed and tested [S9]
Water point functionality surveys indicate that new methods for defining and measuring water point functionality are required to adequately monitor progress towards SDG6 for safely managed water services. There are many definitions for water point functionality, which influence whether a water point is classed as functional or not. Most national surveys are based on a…
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UPGro Science: Affordable maintenance and repair are one of the main predictors of borehole functionality, highlighting the need for effective management models to improve rural water services [S10]
The reasons for poor water point functionality are complex; there is not a simple strong relationship between good governance and the functionality of rural water points. However, affordable maintenance and repair are one of the main predictors of rural water point functionality, pointing to the need to consider different models for the management of community…
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Meet Joseph Okullo, a groundwater research scientist in the making
Interview and photos by Isaiah Esipisu With a Masters degree in geology from Makerere University, Joseph Okullo landed a consultancy job, to assist UPGro team in Uganda as a physical scientist. Since then, his star has been glowing brighter and brighter. During the Africa Water Association (AfWA) Congress in Kampala, the 36 year old upcoming…
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A Malawian researcher takes UPGro knowledge to up-and-coming scientists in college
Interview by Isaiah Esipisu, PAMACC News Agency – www.pamacc.org Patrick Makuluni is a lecturer in the Mining Department of the University of Malawi, the Polytechnic. Makuluni holds MSc in Mineral Exploration and Mining Geology from Curtin University in Australia and BSc in Civil Engineering from University of Malawi, the Polytechnic. Recently, the scientist published a…
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