Boulder Kisumu Sister City Committee

Kisumu City Centre

Boulder, CO

"As the Traveler who has once been from home is wiser than he who has never left his own doorstop, so a knowledge of one other culture should sharpen our ability to scrutinize more steadily, to appreciate more lovingly, our own.”

City Of Boulder Sister Cities Site

Kisumu Project Assessment Visit

Africa Urban Poverty Alleviation Program

December 6th-17th, 2009

Kisumu Project Area Background

Within the Urban district of Kisumu, two of the most neglected areas are in the wards of Obunga and Manyatta, with 90% of the estimated half a million population having no access to basic sanitation and clean water, with the slum schools in Obunga and the Migosi local market place in particular recording very high incidence of cholera and water borne diseases. Following assessments of six project sites, the Kisumu/Boulder African Urban Poverty Alleviation Program (AUPAP) team, with the assistance and guidance of Mr. Tom Connolly, selected two. Every proposed project site that was visited needed assistance, the team struggled to determine which to choose. The two selected projects will impact the largest number of lives, are within scope and are replicable at other sites.

Khudo School Water and Sanitation

At Obunga the main school is the Municipal Kudho joint pre-school, primary and secondary school with over 1200 pupils attending on a daily basis, administrated and managed by 15 professional dedicated staff. This school has no functioning toilets with the exception of basic pit latrines and the only available water supply is derived from collecting rainwater from the school rooftops for both human consumption and hygiene uses. In addition the existing rain catchment storage tank located in the school grounds is in a dilapidated and unusable condition with a large percentage of the catchment water being lost and the only effective water storage is by means of strategically placed plastic tanks to enable a percentage of the rainwater to be saved and made available for use.

A brief history of the Kudho School (Thorn School) as summarized by the Headmistress, Benta Nyapouch: The school is located at the small hill of kanyakwar. The name Kudho was derived from the thorny brush that was cleared when the school was being constructed in the year 1956. The school is a government school with almost 13 acres of land. The catchment area for the is the Obunga slums and Kamikowe, Sega Segs and Lower Kanyakwar hill. The school’s population is 1235 students, with 625 boys and 610 girls. There are 17 government teachers and six support teachers. (Support teachers are volunteers – they receive small tips from the parents who can afford it). There has been an acute water problem at the Kudho School. The school has been using the stream water that comes from the Kanyakmer hills which normally dries up during a severe drought (Kisumu experienced a severe drought in March, April, and May of 2009. Another is expected in March, April and May of 2010). There are eight pit latrines for girls and nine for boys where they gather to answer the call of nature at break time. We are therefore grateful and pray for the Sister Cities together with the committees concerned for their timely kind gesture to uplift the lives of Kudho school pupils and the community at large. May the lord bless this kind support.

Project Solution

          Hydrological survey and drilling of bore hole tube well

          Supply and install of a suitable bore hole water pump and associated control equipment

          Construction of a high level water storage tank

          Construction of a 16 door (8f, 8m) modern flush toilet and ablutions facility

          Supply and installation of an underground water connection pipe line distribution network

Migosi Market/Trading Centre Sanitation Facility

The Migosi Market/Trading Centre is a vibrant slum trading and business location, with over 3,000 sellers and customers trading and purchasing in the open market on a daily basis. In this location there are absolutely no functioning public toilets nor latrines and there is wide spread evidence of residents and traders resorting to the use of ‘flying toilets’, leading to raw human waste and sewage being scattered and deposited along the roadside and throughout the complete market place.

A brief History of the Migosi Slum Market (Car Wash Market): The Migosi Slum Market is an area for selling vegetables, Beef, Chickens, Tilapia, Soda’s, Phone Cards, Clothing, and various other items with over 3,000 sellers and customers trading and purchasing in the open market on a daily basis. It serves a large slum called the Migosi Slum. Currently, when shoppers are utilizing the market area there is nowhere for them to use a public toilet. There is one private toilet in the area, but it is in a bar and generally a non-paying customer would have to sneak in. Otherwise, people living in this are urinating in the ally’s or in the open and utilize flying toilets to defecate. Most people living in this slum do not have access to water or electricity in their houses. They purchase water from street vendors and take it home in large plastic bins for cooking and showering. Only people with ‘more money’ from a regular job would have the capacity to shower even irregularly. People from this area suffer from scabies, skin infections and cholera.

Project Solution

          Construction of a new six door toilet ablution facility, c/w four door public shower facility, hand wash basins and environmentally friendly electrical hand driers

          Supply and install of a suitable bore hole water pump and associated control equipment

          Construction of a high level 3000 ltr water storage tank

          Connection of the toilet ablutions facility to the town electrical supply and the town underground sewage network

The Boulder Team (Mr. Robert Harberg, Ms. Sally Fistler, Mr. Darryl Brown) Travels and is Welcomed Warmly to Kisumu by KBSCC

Kisumu Scenes - What an Amazing Place!

Tom Connolly, MBE, Program Director, Africa Urban Poverty Alleviation Program, Sister Cities International

Welcome Meeting to Set Agenda for the Week - Kiboko Beach on the Winam Bay of Lake Victoria

Training at the La Savanna Hotel Conference Room

Assessment Day One

Assessment Day Two

Meeting with His Worship the Mayor of Kisumu, Mr. Sam Okello

Architectural Renderings of the Site Plans for Khudo and Migosi Market

Assessment and Project Team:

Tom Connolly, Sister Cities International AUPAP Program Director
Jared Oriadha, Kisumu Grant Coordinator and KBSCC Chair
Dr. Hezron Mc'Obewa, Health Representative
Maurice Osiro Jack, Sanitation Representative
Haggai Kadiri, Grant Recorder and Monitor, Treasurer, KBSCC
Cllr. Paul Achayo, City Councillor, Kisumu
Nereah Okumu, Kisumu Committee Member
Erick Ananga, Kisumu Committee Member
Winnie Opar, Kisumu Committee Vice-Chair
Darryl Brown, Boulder Grant Coordinator and BKSCC Chair
Sally Fistler, Grant Recorder and Monitor, Secretary Treasurer, BKSCC
Bob Harberg, City of Boulder Utilities Planning and Project Management Coordinator