WE GO BEYOND. WITH YOU.
WellBoring finances and constructs new wells and well rehabilitation projects in rural sub-Saharan-Africa, delivering safe drinking water to the most vulnerable and the poorest. With local engagement and installation teams, each well is excellently built meet the needs of each school and community. Additionally, we educate schools and communities on well usage, maintenance, and essential hygiene practices. It’s so much more than drilling.
CO-DEVELOPMENT – THE CORE OF WELLBORING!
The water problem looks like a resource problem, but is also a problem of know-how. Local leaders can find some resource and mobilise their communities.
In our early years, we focused on controlling limited funds and directly steering projects. Over time, we’ve distilled our experiences into five transformative lessons for “community co-development”:
- Empower Local Leadership: Our European team does not assume superiority in understanding local matters. It’s a mistake to sideline the local team; their insight minimizes risks.They are leading.
- Collaborate on Solutions: It’s essential to involve local communities in their own development. Rather than imposing solutions, it’s crucial to consult them and appreciate their vision.
- Co-deliver with Communities: Engage local people in implementation. Whether it’s contributing materials, labour, or maintenance, their active participation is key to sustainability.
- Adopt Continuous Co-development: Moving beyond short-term goals, it’s vital to think of sustained community engagement. Many borewells in Africa, while initially successful, later failed due to lack of maintenance and community involvement. This ‘drill and walk-away’ (“DAWA”) approach is counterproductive, but a lasting partnership fosters continued success.
Our co-development principle promotes efficiency and effectiveness. Put simply, by proactively engaging communities, we minimise costs, build awareness and involvement, maximise longevity, sustainability, and impact. True progress lies in mutual respect, collaboration, and long-term engagement with local communities. Thankfully, we don’t have to hold onto our intellectual property. Giving it away achieves more!
“D-I-O” = DRILL IT OURSELVES
Having our own installation team and drilling ourselves enables consistent standards, transparency, and availability, and prevents misappropriation of donations.
But it goes even further. Drilling groundwater wells in sub-Saharan areas is complex, with challenges including:
- Geological and hydrogeological factors: Aquifers vary by region, climate, and geology. Selecting appropriate drilling sites and methods requires a deep understanding of local conditions.
- Technical and financial constraints: Specialized equipment and expertise are crucial for well construction, yet may be scarce. Costs can escalate, especially in remote regions. Financing these projects is challenging.
- Social and cultural elements: Engaging local communities, who are the primary water users, is key. It’s critical to respect local needs and traditions for project success. Prioritizing inclusivity, especially for women and marginalized groups, promotes social progress.
A domestic drilling team offers key advantages:
- Technical expertise: Our local team possesses deep technical knowledge, allows for optimized site selection, and adapts appropriately to geological and climatic conditions.
- Sustainability: Local teams deliver well sustainability through regular maintenance and foster a sense of community by actively involving the population throughout relevant project phases.
- Cultural sensitivity: We understand and respect local needs and traditions, optimize communication, and can bridge cultural differences.
- Economic development: Local teams support the local economy, provide employment, and strengthen local supply chains.
Currently, we’re fully operational in Kenya with the WellBoring Groundwater NGO. Additionally, we manage areas close to the borders of Uganda from Kenya. In Gambia, we work as WellBoring West Africa, a joint partnership with Heeno International. Our work in Gambia and Malawi benefits from the technical direction provided by WellBoring Groundwater. The capacity and budget planning for these projects are supported by WellBoring in the UK.
ANTI-DRILL-AND-WALK-AWAY
Building groundwater wells is more than a one-time project for us—it’s a long-term commitment. Across many regions, thousands of borewells have been successfully drilled, poorly maintained, and later abandoned and forgotten, leading to recurring water problems.
We call it ‘drill and walk-away’, or ‘DAWA’, and it is a disgrace. In our view, it is essential to have an ongoing partnership.
While many NGOs and local governments intend to assist, the practical execution often falls short due to multiple reasons, including poor quality, mismanagement of funds, no responsibilities, the lack of maintenance concepts and a little co-development. The community rarely contribute, they may not have known how to service their well or seek help, and they return to where they started.
Poorly constructed wells have consequences that go beyond financial losses. They can cause health, environmental and social problems and bring the loss of safe water. They do not help solve water poverty.
Our goal is to serve one million people with safe water. Through restoring existing wells and constructing new ones, we maximize our positive impact. We provide efficient aid with well-directed funds so that every well we work on lasts for decades.
SHARING IS CARING? YES. AND MUCH MORE.
WellBoring approaches things a bit differently. We’re driven by the cause and aim to make an impact, just like you. That’s why sharing is paramount to us. Sharing? Indeed — knowledge, time, and of course, everyone’s money, including yours. 😉
Sharing knowledge and expertise is crucial. We educate and train communities and schools on operation, maintenance, hygiene, and water management.
We invest our time in understanding better by closely listening to the needs of people in dry areas. We promote best practices.
We empower.
And of course, we share our knowledge, experiences, and learnings with other NGOs. We’ve mentioned it before: Fortunately, we don’t need to keep our intellectual property to ourselves. Let’s share everything to achieve more!
