How PHASE Is Saving Maracha East Residents From Water Crisis
A staff of PHASE pumps water for residents at one of the newly constructed shallow water well in Paranga sub-county, Maracha East.
MARACHA. Pragmatic Help Achieving Social Empowerment (PHASE), a Nongovernmental Organization has intensified the construction of shallow water wells in Maracha East County, Maracha district with the aim of saving residents from the looming water crisis in the area.
With funding from the International Development and Relief Foundation (IDRF), PHASE officials have launched the second phase of shallow water wells construction in Maracha East.
In the second phase, at least 15 shallow water wells will be constructed in Maracha East County on top of the 9 which were constructed last year.
Speaking to local leaders in Nyadri town on Thursday, March 6, 2025, Justus Yeero Aduma, one of the Directors of PHASE in Uganda, said some of the sub-counties in Maracha East that have grave water challenges will this time round, get two shallow water wells while those that have a little bit better water coverage will get one each.
“We will keep changing this from time to time. As you know, water is really a very big problem in the entire Maracha district because many villages don’t have access to safe and clean water. So, we are happy that our partners are able to support this project for our people to have improved access to safe and clean water,” said Aduma, who doubles as the programs and technical manager for PHASE covering Uganda, Kenya and Somalia.
Aduma observed that the second phase of the shallow water wells construction is estimated to cost about Shs100m including other project related costs.
He assured the public that the quality of the shallow water wells they have constructed is so good as per the tests conducted by water experts.
Similarly, Aduma promised that there is also another project related to water tracking which he is yet lobbying for some institutions and areas that face a lot of challenges when it comes to water accessibility in the district.
“In this, we will buy some tanks where water will be tracked and stored, and eventually the tanks will be left for those institutions. The project will cover the entire district,” Aduma said.
Charles Waga, the Maracha District Secretary for Social Services, commended Aduma for the initiative, saying he has come timely to save Maracha as far as clean water is concerned.
“We don’t have the lobbying capacity among our leaders in Maracha; the leaders are there but the lobbying capacity is not there, the leaders are there by name. The entire Maracha is very vulnerable as far as water is concerned, but how many leaders have we ever had and they have brought for us water as he (Aduma) has done today?” Waga asked.
According to Waga, the Indicative Planning Figure (IPF) given to Maracha district for water for the next financial year is Shs303,000,000. He, however, wondered how many boreholes they could drill using the funds.
Waga said Maracha district has a total of 691 villages with only 270 boreholes including shallow wells which were dug before.
He said in totality, the water coverage in Maracha district based on the number of water sources is at 86 percent.
“But that is not the reality on ground because out of 270 water sources I have mentioned, most of them are not functioning. The government has deliberately refused to decommission the nonfunctional water sources. In these villages, most of these boreholes are not functioning now but in the ministry database, it is reading that they are working. By number, we have the boreholes existing, but by functionality, they are not there,” Waga explained.
Samson Anguzu, the Maracha Town Council Assistant Water Officer, said currently, the water coverage for Maracha Town Council alone is 40.2 percent.
He said whenever they go for assessments, water issues come up but they are always given least attention by the government.
Jimmy Oraku Abirionzia, the Nyadri South sub-county chairperson, expressed gratitude to PHASE through the stewardship of Aduma for coming to their aid.
“Our people have been lacking safe water for a long period, this is now the best time Aduma has really saved my community, I’m really very grateful for him. We are ready to have ownership with the communities of these water sources, we are ready for anything he brings for us,” Oraku said.
Oraku added that: “Some of the boreholes which other people are repairing are supposed to be decommissioned, they are not safe water sources. Now somebody is repairing a borehole which has been abandoned for over 10 years, aware that such a borehole has totally rusted. By the way, some of those boreholes being repaired were also abandoned because they already had faecal matter (faeces) which is not fit for human consumption.”
But Oraku also used the opportunity to appeal to PHASE officials to equally start targeting institutions on grounds that most schools currently lack water and as a result, children carry water from home in bottles to go and drink at school while others borrow drinking water from the neighboring homes which puts their lives at risk.
Meanwhile Grace Amviko, a resident of Maracha Town Council, said as women, they are suffering so much in accessing water for domestic use.
Amviko observed that they usually go to fetch water from 10pm and come back at 3:00am in the wee hours of the night, leaving children to sleep inside alone.
“This has made our husbands suspicious of us thinking that we are out there with other men. Some of our husbands beat us because of that. Today, I’m happy that Aduma has come with this program of bringing safe water closer to us. We thank him and PHASE International very much for working hard to reduce the water challenge in Maracha East in general,” Amviko said.