This project is to provide a water supply for the Matunda Health Centre. It is hoped that this water supply will also provide a watering point for the surrounding community of Matunda Market. The Matunda Health Centre is situated in Matunda, Nzoia Location, Likuyani Division, Lugari District, Western Province at approximately 0 Degrees 50’ North Latitude, 35 Degrees 7’ East Longitude, approximately 40 km north of Eldoret along the main Eldoret-Kitale road.
The Matunda Clinic was started in 1999 in a rented house. Through donations from various Kenyan and international sources, the clinic has expanded to include a maternity ward and an outpatient clinic. Matunda Market is an active commercial area with many small-scale traders and hawkers. Water supply and sanitation are lacking.
There are no sanitation facilities in the area. The recently improved clinic is operating with no adequate water supply. Water must be hauled from the Mtoni-Polisi River 1.7 km from the site, from rainwater catchments, or other unsanitary sources. Basic sanitation is lacking because of the underlying poverty of the area. Many people living in the Matunda Market area were displaced from neighboring districts as a result of the 1991-92 and 1997-98 politically instigated land and tribal clashes. Most of these displaced people must now subsist on small plots of land from 0.1 to 0.5 acre. Most cannot afford adequate medical care, meals, water, or shelter. Consequently, quite a number die from preventable and easily treatable diseases.
The clinic itself was constructed with funding from a number of sources including the Lugari Constituency Development Fund, the Australian High Commission in Kenya, the Safaricom Foundation, and donated local labor. Currently there are several out-patient rooms and a small maternity wing. The water supply problem remains for the clinic and for the region as a whole.
The clinic serves the residents of Matunda Market, the whole of the Nzoia and Sinoko locations of the Lugari District and people from the adjacent districts for a total population near 60,000 – 70,000 people.
Social relationships are relatively harmonious at this time. This was not the case during several periods of civil unrest under the Government of Daniel Moi in 1991-92 and 1997-98. At that time, the Government was pressing for a one party system of rule and people in the Western areas of Kenya fought against it fearing that control would be placed solely in the hands of President Moi’s tribal group to the exclusion of the tribal groups that predominate in this area.
There is an elected committee called the Matunda Health Centre Committee. It’s members include Ms. Agnes Usagi, Chairperson; Mr. John Maina Karemi, Secretary; Mr. John Soita, Treasurer; and members Mr. John Nderitu, Mr. Charles Nanjum, Mr. Robert Charukha, Mr. Charles Bifwoli, Mr. Hilary Njaya. Ex-officio members include Mr. Were Ngao, Chief Nzoia Location; Cllr. Rombola Kasaya, Area Councilor; Hon. Dr. Enoch W. Kibunguchy, Lugari M.P.
Mr. Anthony Simiyu helps facilitate the connection between assisting NGO’s and the Matunda Health Centre Committee. However, project decisions are made locally in Matunda by the aforementioned committee. The main contact for the Matunda Health Centre Committee is Ms. Agnes Usagai, as mentioned previously.
The local community has a rich tradition with hand weaving and crochet work done mostly by women.
The goal of the project is to provide a water supply for the Matunda Health Centre and, to some degree, the surrounding community. The project is necessary because a source of clean water is essential to the functioning of a medical facility such as the Matunda Health Centre. The Matunda Health Centre Committee proposes that the water be obtained by a drilled well or a series of drilled wells.
While drilled wells are preferred, they can be costly and the success of a drilled well is not guaranteed. Therefore, the best available susbsurface information needs to be assembled and all available water supplies need to be evaluated as part of the assessment trip.
A drilled well or wells is the solution proposed by the Matunda Health Centre Committee. This and any alternatives need to be evaluated at the assessment stage.
Possible sources of water include groundwater from a drilled well and river water from the Mtoni-Polisi River some 1.7 km away. The availability of springboxes and rainfall catchments would need to be assessed. Surface water quality can be assumed to be poor due to the dense concentrations of rural subsistence farms.
There is no specific health assessment available for the Matunda area at this time. However, a health assessment from another community in Western Kenya (http://www.medlib.iupui.edu/moi/sirisia/sirisia.htm) indicates the prevalence of malaria, AIDS, tuberculosis, diarrheal diseases, intestinal worms, measles, malnutrition, and skin disease. All of these conditions are caused or exacerbated by a lack of adequate hygiene. Similar conditions or worse may be assumed for the Matunda area.
High levels of Fluoride can occur in groundwater sources to the south of Matunda. If a groundwater source is pursued, field testing should be done of any available groundwater sources to verify that the fluoride levels are within healthy limits.
Some of the resources readily available in digital form for the technical aspects of this project include:
- Lugari District, 1:50,000 scale map of political boundaries and major features, available in black & white digital file. PDF 607 kb file size.
- Bedrock Geology Map, J.H. Schuitz, Director, D.O. Muller, assistant editor, legend and map, partial black & white scan, two TIF files, 3 MB + 7 MB file size.
With a healthful water supply, a fully-functioning clinic in Matunda would provide general health services including maternity care, basic trauma care, and care for walk-in patients. The service area for this clinic could include 60,000 to 70,000 people. A water tap that is accessible to the public would provide an additional health and economic benefit to the immediate area. These are the main positive effects. There may be positive economic effects due to the greater influx of people to the area seeking these medical services.
The Matunda Health Centre Committee with support from the Kenyan Ministry of Health would own and operate the clinic and the clinic’s water supply.
The EWB team will educate the Matunda Health Centre technical staff on the operation and maintenance of the water supply system.
The Matunda Health Centre Committee with support from the Kenyan Ministry of Health would own, operate, and maintain the clinic and the clinic’s water supply.
Typically, if a clinic has a sufficient supply of good water, a water tap at the clinic is made accessible to the surrounding community. Such taps may be fenced off at certain times to prevent vandalism. Examples of this arrangement can be found at the Bokoli clinic in the Bungoma District and many other locations. By this approach a water tap is maintained for public use by the clinic technical staff.
No fee is anticipated for the publicly accessed water supply. The fee structure for health care in the clinic is not discussed here.
EWB can offer expertise in water supply engineering, water treatment, and construction management. Such skills exist in Kenya but because the demand for these skills far exceeds the supply, EWB’s contribution would be very helpful.
It is anticipated that the community will be able to contribute locally available materials, labor, and a limited amount of cash.
Labor is readily available through the Matunda Health Centre Committee. The availability of other resources will need to be assessed.
Local labor will be available as an in-kind contribution through the Matunda Health Centre Committee. The availability of other resources will need to be assessed.
Moi University in Eldoret is within a 2-hour drive. The University of Massachusetts EWB chapter has made contact with two Moi University professors who may be interested in some form of collaboration as the project develops.
The dry season typically runs from October through January. This is perhaps the best time to assess water resources or the lack thereof.
Typical living costs are about $30 USD per day per person. This includes hotel accommodations and food.
Hotels are available within daily commuting distance of Matunda.
Malaria is endemic in this area as in most of East Africa. The dry season holds somewhat less of a malaria threat because mosquitoes are minimized in the dry weather. Precautions include using insect repellant and mosquito nets. Bottled water is readily available and should be used. Normal precautions with food are necessary. Inoculations against typhoid and yellow fever are recommended by the CDC.
The U.S. Embassy lists a wide variety of recommended hospital facilities in Nairobi but Nairobi is a full day’s drive away. There are several health care centers in Kitale, 26 km to the north and in Eldoret 40 km to the south, none of which are listed officially by the US Embassy. Eldoret, being a regional center and the home of Moi University has adequate health care facilities even though they are not listed by the US Embassy.
• In Kitale there is Mt. Elgon Hospital, Ltd., Hospital Rd. Kitale, tel. 054-30704.
• In Eldoret there is Eldoret Hospital, Makesembo Rd., Eldoret, tel. 053-61921and four other facilities.
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