AMARA Aid has been privileged to help a charity called “BREAD” who are working in a small village called Tharaka in Kenya. Tharaka is situated in a drought prone area and is consistently lacking in sanitary drinking water as the river is a considerable distance to walk and the water is often contaminated by animals and humans alike.

Some time ago, AMARA Aid was contacted with a request to support the village to purchase 500 gallon plastic water tanks to collect clean rain water during the rainy season.

As the temperatures in March can rise to as high as 43 degrees centigrade the journey to the river to collect water is very arduous. The reward for the women who carry out this task, apart from aching arms and a sore back, is just 5 gallons of dirty water which carries many germs and can cause disease. Young children are especially at risk from diseases including dysentery.

In contrast, rain water is clear, pure and uncontaminated as it falls on the corrugated iron sheets which most Tharaka households have on the roofs of their mud-walled houses.

A tank full of precious clean water is sufficient to provide a family’s drinking water throughout the drought period. Consequently, children and adults are in better health.

Before a family can receive a tank they are asked to contribute sand and water from the nearby area for the workers to carry out the construction at their home. This not only encourages the family to take some responsibility for the project but also assists to select recipient families. A construction team builds a concrete base and erects the tank in position.

To date, 34 rain water tanks have been erected and are now in use. A further 6 tanks have been purchased and will soon be installed. Many more families are keen to have a tank of their own and AMARA Aid is helping to finance these as funds become available.

The people of Tharaka testify to the love of God in the provision of these tanks. To use the words written on one of the concrete bases, “Jesus is alive today”.