Dia is a large subsistence farming village of some 800 people situated to the east of the Pujehun region some 5km past the Moa river in the eastern of quarter of Barri Chiefdom.
When we first became aware of the village it already had a well, but demand on the supply was more than the low volume pump could cope with, it became unreliable and failed in the dry season which meant the village had to resort to returning to nearby contaminated springs. In 2013 we agreed to drill 2 new wells in different locations in the village each fitted with one of our trusted India Mk2 hand pumps in order to ensure adequate supply throughout the year.
To access the village the drilling team needed to navigate with our heavy truck and drilling rig across the river via a ferry crossing in Jaiwulo (recently thankfully, a new bridge has started construction, which will make life considerably easier for future maintenance/drilling trips!)
In 2015 we realised there was a further urgent need for an additional well at the Dia Primary School situated on the outskirts of the village. Although short of funds, we were able to do this due to the untiring work of our late Trustee Barnaby Elphick and the amazing fundraising efforts of the children, staff and parents of Marksbury Primary School.
During the drilling of this well in Dia, Barnaby whose son attended the Marksbury school, worked with both schools to develop a regular line of communication. This established a great lasting relationship and in 2016 Marksbury School went on to also provide valuable additional teaching materials and books to the Dia school.
The repair to this well was recently successfully completed and the school once again have water without needing to walk into the village centre.
Here we can see water is being pumped by one of the teachers as pupils look on. Such proximity to a clean water supply has a great benefit to the school and they want to offer their deep gratitude to all our sponsors for keeping our maintenance team funded so that this repair could be completed.
It takes only a few pounds to repair a well and ensure a continued water supply. If you think you can afford a small amount to enable a school or a village to maintain their well, we would love to hear from you. Donations can be made easily through any of the links on this site, we can arrange for the gift aid to be added if you are a UK tax payer and you will be helping the children and by extension, the future of Sierra Leone.
Thank you