Ugandans pump Canadian wells

Fresh water means people are not at risk of water-born diseases

- Photo by Vince Ramcharran The people of Uganda often take their water from polluted sources.

By DAVE FULLER
Special to the WCR

On July 6, I flew out of Edmonton to arrive two days later in Kampala, Uganda. This opportunity came about after a friend of Dr. Chris Opio of the University of Northern B.C. in Prince George told me he was going to do some work in Uganda. He needed help checking on the wells his organization NUDF (Northern Uganda Development Foundation) had installed in the past year.

After a few days in Kampala, we headed north to the villages with the NUDF wells. The greeting we received was amazing. Hundreds of villagers came out dressed in their best clothes, singing, dancing, and waving flowers and branches. They were so grateful for the wells that had been installed, we were treated as royalty.

These people had nothing except their mud huts and the small parcels of land that had been passed on from generation to generation.

It was this land that enabled them to subsist on a diet of cassava, corn, mangos, the odd chicken or goat, and other foods they could grow. Uganda, I came to understand, is the breadbasket of Africa. Two or three crops could be grown per year in its rich soil.

No potable water

But touring from village to village in this land that had been devastated for the past 21 years by civil war, it became apparent the lack of access to clean water was a serious issue. People drank out of swamps, small ponds and open water sources and it made them sick.

I had brought some vitamins. While most of the vitamins and supplements that had been donated were given to the local health authority for distribution at a public hospital, I kept some to give out to sick villagers.

It quickly became apparent many ailments were the result of parasites — stomach problems, rashes, headaches, aching joints. But in the villages where wells were installed, people consistently spoke of the reduction of these parasitic problems.

- Photo by Vince Ramcharran Dr. Chris Opio of Northern Uganda Development Foundation inspects a newly-drilled water well in Uganda

People could work better, children felt well enough to go to school more regularly, and the community no longer suffered from such problems as stomach upsets or constant diarrhea.

While each well cost only $2,500, it served communities of up to 2,800 people and made a huge difference in their lives. These people daily walk up to five km for clean, safe water and pack 50-pound water jugs back the same distance.

On Sunday we went to Mass in the village. The church had no roof, no glass in the windows and only a few benches. But it was packed with hundreds of people singing, dancing and praising God with such joy as I have rarely seen in Canada.

The choir was amazing. Despite the people’s lack of possessions, they had such a strong faith I felt humbled.

Even the political meetings started with a prayer.

I returned to Canada after a couple of weeks in Africa and I appreciated how lucky we are to be born and live in this wonderful country.

It is hard for Canadians to comprehend the need for clean water and the value of water that flows so freely from our taps, in our houses that have electricity and our communities that have universal health care and roads relatively free of potholes.

For only $2,500 . . .

In Uganda, a couple of thousand dollars can change the lives and improve the health of a village of 1,000 to 2,000 people. The people are extremely grateful for this support.

Now if only our churches and our lives could be filled with the joy these poor people experience and share.

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