January 2003 Report

Food Delivery and Research Rearding Water and Sanitation Needs in the Village of Foutaka, Zambougou, Mali, West Africa

Report by Karen Marx

Food

Abdoul Doumbia and I traveled to Bamako, Mali, in late Decemer, 2002, then traveled to Segou. Segou is the town where farmers bring their crops to sell, and then it is transported to Bamako and other areas. We were in Segou for a day and a half to locate the quantity of food we wanted to purchase, negotiate the price, hire loaders, and acquire trucks to transport the food to Zambougou. In Segou we were welcomed at the home of Almamyba, a well-known Malian musician who plays kamalingoni and sings spiritual songs. Almamyba was able to negotiate a fair price for the food, as the supply is limited due to the drought in Mali. The price is twice that in 1999 when we last delivered food to Zambougou.

We purchased 37,400 pounds of millet and rice, most of which was delivered to Zambougou and the "Fulani" village adjacent. The villagers were extremely grateful for the food, as their supply was insufficient to feed them until the next harvest, due to the severe drought conditions. There are approximately 1325 villagers in Zambougou, plus about 350 "Fulani" tribe members who are in a cluster adjacent to the main village and consider themselves part of Zambougou. This is a total of 1675 villagers, approximately.

Upon arriving in Zambougou-Fouta, we were warmly greeted – a better description would be gleefully! The next morning Abdoul, Sekou Camara, Souley Diarra, and I met with the village and spoke with the elders. Sekou Camara is a translator, historian, teacher, and storyteller from Bamako who is Abdoul’s longtime friend and has been our translator during all of the five visits to Mali that I have made. Souley is Abdoul’s closest friend and assists him with all of his Malian endeavors.

Sekou described to the elders and the village our desire to assist the village in becoming fully self-sufficient. The villagers were extremely receptive and happy with our presence.

Water and Wells

While in Segou, Sekou, Souley, and I met with the director, Oumar Traore, of "Direction Regionale Hydraulique Et Energie, Region De Segou, Republique du Mali". With Sekou as my translator, I discussed with Mr. Traore The Mali Assistance Project, our efforts to date with food delivery and our research relating to water in the village of Foutaka Zambougou, the meager supply and contamination of existing water. Mr. Traore stated that his office was aware of the water problems in Zambougou. He said that this village was the driest area in the Segou region and had possibly the worst problem with water among all of the villages. He said that he was extremely pleased to know that MAP was working to assist the village and offered his full support and gratitude.

Mr. Traore explained that the land is hard volcanic rock and dry land. He said it is not easy to drill or to find water. He described the efforts over the past 18 years to find water. 139 meters was drilled in Tesserela with no water found. 81 meters was drilled in Zambougou by another NGO with no water found.

Technicians from his staff traveled to Zambougou several months ago to inspect the wells and to assess the problem. They were able to allocate the funds to replace one of the Mark II hand pumps supplied in the 1980’s by Saudi Arabia (it has been broken since 1986 and was manufactured in India – parts are no longer available). They cleaned out the well and provided a French pump called Vergnet. This well produces at a rate of 1.35 cubic meters per hour. Another well dug in 1986 by Saudi Arabia, that has a broken Mark II pump, produces water at a rate of 1.4 cubic meters per hour; however, the water is inaccessible to the village due to the broken pump. It is 93 meters deep. Mr. Traore stated that his office has determined that one good producing well per 400 villagers is required to have sufficient water. The village has approximately 1675 members. Four good wells are necessary. However, Mr. Traore said that his office did not have the funds to replace the second Mark II pump or to help Zambougou additionally with their water problems.

I described to Mr. Traore the research and efforts made by EWB-USA (Engineers Without Borders), founded by Professor Bernard Amadei. I asked his opinion of using the Peace Corps model of hand-digging wells to a deeper level, then adding Dutch bricks and concrete liners to limit contamination. His strong recommendation was to bring in a drilling rig, create 100-meter deep tube wells, use the French hand pump, and create a concrete platform around the pump to prevent contamination of the wells and of the containers used by the villagers. I requested that one of his technicians go with us to Zambougou to inspect the wells and further discuss the options to remediate the water problems. Siaka volunteered and traveled with us to Zambougou on January 2nd.

On January 3rd, Sekou, Siaka, two village well experts and I walked around the entire village to inspect and measure the wells and the latrines. Rocky Mountain Consultants, an engineering firm in Longmont associated with MAP and EWB-USA, donated to EWB a GPS (global positioning system). I was able to mark the coordinates, via satellite, of all of the wells and many of the latrines in the village, and to create landmarks for the perimeter of the village. With a rock tied to a rope, we measured the depth of each well and the level of water in the well. We discussed with the villagers the usage of each well and noted that most of the wells had gone dry. There were dry well holes all around the village – a serious danger for children playing. I asked if children ever fell into the wells, as there is no protection around the holes, and was told that they do. When this unfortunate event happens, it is either fatal or the child is seriously injured. I filmed the wells, the former swamp areas, the dried up gardens, the animals and their water source, and the villagers during their daily lives.

The village well experts explained that their fathers and grandfathers taught them to never dig a well deeper than the volcanic rock, as the well would cave in and suffocate them. They said that all of the wells were dug to this point and could not be dug deeper. With this information and the expertise of Siaka and Oumar Traore, Sekou and I realized that the only option for an appropriate water solution would be to

1. Repair and clean out the former Saudi Arabian dug well, then install the French hand pump and replace the broken concrete slab around the pump.
2. At the location of one of the existing wells that currently has water and is centrally located to service many villagers, to bring in a drilling rig and dig the well to a 100 meter depth; install a tube well and the French hand pump; and create a large, round, concrete slab with a retaining wall around the pump to provide a clean area to set containers to be filled with water.
3. Locate a third existing well to dig to the 100 meter depth, as above.

This would provide the village with four good producing wells and a constant supply of water. It also would provide clean, pure water – there would be no need to provide water purification systems. The existing wells are seriously contaminated from the latrines that are ten to twenty feet from the wells, as well as debris that fall into the wells. With the described new deep wells, the contamination from latrines would no longer be a factor and a problem.

Many meetings were held with the elders, Sekou, and myself to discuss all of the issues that are distressing the villagers. One agreement was that each family would contribute a specific sum of money monthly (such as 1000 CFA - $1.5), a savings account will be opened in Tesserela where they have a bank for farmers, and the funds will be used for future repairs to the new pumps. We created a committee that will be responsible for maintenance of the wells and pumps, collecting the money monthly, educating the villagers about only using these wells for drinking and cooking water, and for future repairs. Specific villagers will be trained in pump repair. A women’s committee was also created to facilitate the use of the new wells. Mr. Traore estimated that the yearly cost to repair pumps would be about 100,000 CFA ($154) for parts and a repair technician. I asked the committee what they would do if a family refused to contribute to the well fund. They decided that they would take one of their chickens and sell it. Sekou explained to the village that they were already paying for water in terms of purchasing ropes, illness, etc.

Garden

We agreed that the committee would search for and locate a plot of fertile land where the women would have a community garden for vegetables and negotiate a price to purchase the land. Rather than individual family vegetable gardens, the women will work together. MAP & EWB-USA will provide an irrigation system for the garden.

Medical Needs

Being in Zambougou for six days enabled me to realize the serious level of illness among all of the children. One child died while we were there. We drove two children and their mother to the hospital in Segou who were diagnosed with malaria, then sent back home with medicine. Many mothers came to me with their very sick children, hoping that I could do something to help them, and I could do nothing. In spite of the incredible hardship of insufficient food, lack of nutrition, illness, death, and contaminated water, the people of Zambougou-Fouta were possibly the warmest, most hospitable, most loving, smiling, and talented people I have ever met. When it was time to leave, in one sense it was heart wrenching and in another sense I felt very happy and greatly satisfied to know that we had found a solution to provide clean water and health to these extremely thankful people.

Our driver had driven Siaka back to Segou to report to Oumar Traore and to price the well repairs and digging new wells. After leaving Zambougou, we went back to Segou to meet with Oumar Traore. He presented us with pricing for the work we wish to do. His office has the equipment, the expertise, and the manpower to do the work and to support the village with the changes. We agreed that MAP would work with his office to provide the well repairs. Currently the price to dig two new wells and repair the one pump is about $26,000. Siaka explained that they would bring in a geo-physician, measuring machines to determine the nature of the soil, the type of rock, how deep to dig to have pure water that will last a minimum of a full year through the dry season. Then, they would bring in a truck with a drilling rig. It is urgent that this work is completed by March 2003 and that this amount of money is raised to do this work.

I described to Mr. Traore the concept of a rain catchment system. During the four to five-month rainy season (from June to Oct), the rain can be torrential. If water were caught and kept in a holding tank, it could be used for bathing, washing clothes, watering animals, and possibly irrigation. Mr. Traore was not aware of this type of system and said that nothing like this currently exists in Mali, but he felt that it would be extremely beneficial for many villages. He offered his complete support in our efforts to create a rain catching system in Zambougou. The villagers also agreed that this could be extremely beneficial and they were very positive about the idea. MAP is currently working with EWB-USA to develop a system and a holding container, appropriate for Zambougou.

School

Region of Segou, Cercle Baraoueli, Commune of Tesserela, Zambougou-Fouta

I had several meetings with the three teachers of Zambougou, inspected and photographed the existing school, and discussed the current problems that are making it basically impossible to have a school at this time. After our meetings, I requested that the teachers prepare a report with specifics about their needs. The following is their report:

The school is in very bad condition. We request a new school with six classes because next year we would like to have six grades. We want that children go regularly to school every year. We intend that all of the children in the village of school age should be recruited It needs to be a community school, not private.

• The head master office should be built.
• One toilet with two compartments must be built (one for boys and one for girls).
  
• We need books to be read in class (from grade one through grade six).
• We need geography, history, biology, and math books (from class one to class six).
• We will need a well in the yard.

Teachers’ Living Conditions

We were trained by the CAP (Centre d’Animation Pedagogique) and NGO partners such as the World Bank and Care Mali. The teachers’ salaries are to be paid by pupil’s parents. We are not being regularly paid. Our salary is between 25,000 CFA ($38 per month) for the newly hired teacher and 35,000 CFA ($54 per month) for the two older teachers (the fourth teacher recently quit.) It’s not easy to live with such a salary. We have to buy clothes, food, medication, and do many other expenses with such a small salary, which is impossible. Our life is being sacrificed.

We’d like to be granted better living conditions in the village through:

• The building of a teachers’ ward.
• An increase of our salaries to 50,000 CFA ($77 / mo) for a nine month period, or 37,500 CFA paid over twelve months. We currently are not paid during the vacations (July, August, and September). We are contract workers who almost have no rights.

The teachers also described that they do not have acceptable accommodations in the village (one teacher came back after a week long trip to find another person living in his designated dwelling and he had nowhere to sleep). They only have food prepared by the villagers, which they find to be substandard. In order to be able to prepare their own food and secure a permanent dwelling space, they need to be paid sufficient salaries. The salaries are supposed to be paid by the Mali government through taxes collected, as the school is supposed to be public, but the government does not pay. Each family with children in school is expected to pay 2,000 CFA per student per month, making the school private, and the families feel they cannot afford this fee.

One teacher is pregnant and has an eleven-year-old daughter to support. Another teacher said her husband died two years ago and left her with five children. Her children are living in Bamako with her sister, while she is in Zambougou teaching, trying to send money to support her children. The third teacher is a single man.

As I was walking through the village examining the wells, I came across a uniformed military officer with a rifle slung over his shoulder. I was told he was there to collect back taxes from several families who have not paid for two years. The amount that they owe and still cannot pay is 2000 CFA ($3.08). I was informed that the policeman planned to take some of their chickens as payment.

At present, the school building is inhabited by donkeys!! All of the desks and seats for students, teacher desks, chairs, and blackboards are broken! There is no latrine for students or teachers. While teachers are trying to conduct class, the donkeys, sheep, goats, etc. are outside the windows making constant noise. The school is made from the mud adobe bricks and is about to collapse. A French NGO recently supplied a new metal roof for the school, but a new concrete block building must be built within the next couple of years.

The percentage of school age children who are attempting to attend school is less than 10%. The parents, at this time, would rather have the children help with the daily workload. Plus, they are concerned that if the children learn to read, they will want to leave the village and farming when they are old enough and will go to Bamako to attempt to find work. In Bamako, they would most likely become "lost souls". Most of the young people in Bamako currently and historically cannot find work. Few people in Bamako seem to have enough money to purchase sufficient food for their families.

Sekou Camara, my translator who is also a teacher, historian, and storyteller, and I discussed with the teachers the future of the school. We agreed that once the school was functional and families began to see the benefit of literacy and the advantages of education for their children and for the village, there would be more interest and greater attendance. I agreed to assist the teachers in providing school for the remainder of the year and next year. If the village had literate members, they would be able to negotiate with the Mali government representatives and have a voice in the political environment. They could speak on behalf of the village to the government and other organizations. It would assist them with micro-business enterprises. The "secrets and medicine" of the old people are being written down by outsiders, as the old people cannot write, and then they are lost to the village. Or they are forever lost when the old people die. Many benefits of having educated children were discussed, and we agreed that it might take five years of a successful educational program before the families fully understand the value of education. It does not necessarily mean that children would leave the village.

Immediate School Needs

I asked the teachers to make a list of immediate needs in order to have the school functional; determine the costs of these needs; and then write down long term needs.

Immediate needs and costs for one calendar year:

Purchase new table / chair sets

Class 1 & 2	8 Tables
Class 3	10 Tables
Class 4	12 Tables
Class 5	5 Tables
35 Tables @ $7 ea	$245

Blackboards

3 blackboards on the wall	3 Blackboards
2 additional blackboards	2 Blackboards
5 blackboards @ $8	$40

Teacher desks and chairs

4 teacher desks @ $7 ea	$28

4 Teacher Chairs @ $6 ea	$24

Copybooks

Class 1 & 2: 26 pupils	52 Copybooks
Class 3: 29 pupils	100 Copybooks
Class 4: 29 pupils	240 Copybooks
Class 5: 10 pupils	100 Copybooks
Total 94 Pupils: 492 Copybooks @ $0.38	$190

Rulers

94 Rulers @ $0.23 ea	$22

Pencils

188 Pencils @ $0.11	$22

Erasers

94 Erasers @ $0.08	$8

Pens

470 Blue pens @ $0.11	$55
470 Red pens @ $0.11	$55

Mathematical sets

94 Mathematical sets @ $2.34	$220

French dictionaries

2 dictionaries @ $10 ea	$20

Salaries

3 Teachers @ $692/year	$2,076

TOTAL

TOTAL SCHOOL SUPPLIES & EQUIPMENT NEEDED	$3,005

Peace Corps Volunteer

In a meeting with the elders, I inquired about their desire to have a Peace Corps Volunteer living in Zambougou and discussed the potential benefits to the village. They responded that if the PCV were willing to work directly with and be guided by MAP and EWB-USA, they would be very pleased to have a volunteer living in the village. I explained that they would need to build a house for the volunteer. MAP committed to provide $650 for the purchase of corrugated steel for the roof.

By the time of my departure from Mali in mid-January, I felt gratified that solutions were found for the serious water supply & quality problems in the village and I realized that I needed to immediately raise $30,000 for well digging and repair.

Donations are desperately needed now, so that well repair and construction can begin immediately. The villagers are suffering now, with NO WATER in their wells. As of March 10, 2003, MAP has less than half of the funds needed for this project. Your assistance at this time would be greatly appreciated.

With great appreciation to all those who have offered support and contributions.

Sincerely,

Karen Marx, Founder and Executive Director
The Mali Assistance Project (MAP)
Board of Directors of Witness, a Human Rights Project

Back to Top