This project provides funding for 14 new groups consisting of 265 women to participate in Path From Poverty's micro-savings and rainwater catchment tank access program in rural Kenya. With matching financial support from Path From Poverty-US, the women have set a target to purchase 23 of the 10,000L tanks in 2018. These tanks will provide clean water for their families/communities and save over 40,000 hours each year in walking (with 40lb jerry cans) to and from water sources.
Women living in rural Kenya spend on average 3 - 6 hours each day walking to water sources, returning home carrying heavy jerry cans, and filtering silty water for use and re-use. This labor-intensive task means they have minimal time for farming or other income-generating work to support their families. Further, water often contains farming run-off and other contaminants, and the journey is dangerous for young women and girls who are still being raped and even kidnapped when traveling alone.
10,000L rainwater tanks attached to a home mean women have immediate access to clean water for themselves, extended family and neighbors. Path From Poverty will train 265 women in leadership, entrepreneurship, and micro-savings and provide a financial tank match; while PFP-Kenya women pool earnings from income-generating projects, such as basket weaving, for tank purchases. Access to clean water means women can focus on growing their business to increase revenue and break the cycle of poverty.
The project will replicate in 3 new regions of Kenya a program that has already reached over 20,000 individuals and shown incredible long-term impact. Earning their own money means these 265 women will become empowered within their families and communities to initiate sustainable change: Increased health and well-being, school enrollment for children and first-generation college access. PFP-Kenya women are becoming leaders within their communities and even running for higher political office.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
