Water Tanks for Arri Schools

When the new Tanzanian school year began this past July, Karimu provided handwashing stations with soap, hand sanitizer, cleaning supplies, and hygiene posters to the schools in both Ayalagaya and Arri Wards. All Ayalagaya schools have running water on site, but that is not the case in neighboring Arri Ward. In Arri, children must take time away from class to carry buckets from the nearest water source to their schools for cooking, drinking, and washing. Water sources may not always have water available. And the amount of water needed on a daily basis has increased with the pandemic and the focus on handwashing to prevent disease transmission.

Karimu donated 3,000-liter tanks to schools in the Arri Ward villages of Jangwani, Sharmo, Arri, Dohom, and Endasago, and 2,000-liter tanks to schools in Tsaayo and Dudiye. For some schools, such as Arri primary, the children no longer have to fetch water at all. The parents decided to pay to have an oxcart fetch the water twice a day. For other schools, the water tank provides ~3 days of water for the days when there is no water from the water source.

This is merely a stop-gap measure. The long term plan is to bring clean water on-site for all schools in Arri in 2021-2022.

Expected benefits:

• Fewer interrupted school days

• Availability of water for cooking and drinking

• Improved hygiene

Learn more about Karimu Education Program .