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Kamancheli & Mekoda Village Fact Sheet
At a Glance
• Combined Village Population
 
200, approximately
• Region and Area
Brong Ahafo Region, Banda
• Crops
Yams, Groundnut, Manioc, Tomato, Maize(primarily subsistence farming)
• Trade
Potting, Ceramics
• Religions
Christianity, Islam, Traditional
• Notable Geographic Landmarks
 
Bui National Park, The Banda Hills, Tombe Gap
Geographic Location
Your contribution to project Well Donecan make a profound difference in thelives of those without access to cleanwater. To donate today, please visit:www.brutelabs.org/welldone
About Well Done
Well Done is an ongoing effort betweenBRUTE LABS and Pioneers-Africa to bringclean water to communities throughoutrural Ghana.
Background
Kamancheli and Mekoda are two nearby villages (approximately 5 miles apart) located in the Brong-Ahafo region of Ghana. Situated on the border between Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire, the Kamancheli andMekoda villages are located on the outer fringes of one of the most underserved regions of the entirecountry. Access to the remote villages is only possible via a truck-ride through the Bui National Park,a national conservation area that is rarely visited due to its remoteness and lack of reliable infrastruc-ture. The nearest town that offers basic services is Banda, located approximately 1.5 hours away bytruck ride.
Water Situation
Both villages lack any reliable, local water source beyond a few unprotected ponds and streams thatll with muddy, visibly contaminated water during a heavy rainfall. In the absence of this unreliableand unsafe supply, the villagers walk approximately 10 kilometers on foot to fetch water from anothervillage in the region. This long trek is made on a daily basis during the dry season, most often by theyoung children and women of the village. Water related illnesses, including life-threatening diarrheadiseases among children, are common throughout both of the communities. In recent years, workersin the villages have been attempting to manually dig a well using makeshift tools and their bare hands,but have been unsuccessful at any such attempts.
Solutions
The villages of Kamancheli and Mekoda are located in a tropical region of the country that experienceslarge quantities of annual rainfall, some of which seeps into the soil and eventually into the groundwa-ter system, saturating pores in the granular soil and fractures in the underlying rock. If accessed witha properly sited and constructed well, this groundwater source could provide a safe and sustainablewater supply for the basic needs of the community far into the foreseeable future. However, onepotential difculty of drilling a well in these areas is transportation of the drilling equipment. Theunmaintained, dirt roads leading to the villages are in very poor condition, resulting in difculty inaccess by large vehicles carrying heavy drilling equipment. If the drilling of a well is deemed infea-sible due to these conditions, other potential clean water solutions exist including development of arainwater harvesting system (in which rainwater is collected from the rooftops of village homes) or theinstallation of a “hand-dug” well, which though less reliable than a typical well, only requires small-scale construction equipment. One of the rst steps in identifying the most appropriate solution willbe a site visit by a hydrogeological and engineering expert to determine the feasibility of the differentoptions. From this preliminary investigation, an appropriate technology can be selected, launchingthe overall process to bring clean water to the Kamancheli and Mekoda villages. The general processfor implementing a clean water solution can be found on page 2.While the most appropriate clean water solution (a well, rainwater harvesting system, etc.) for the Ka-mancheli and Mekoda villages has yet to be determined, the general cost of drilling a typical boreholeis presented on page 3.BRUTE LABS – Project ‘Well Done’ – Village Fact Sheet for Kamancheli and Mekoda - Last Updated: 12/2008
 
The Process of Developing a Clean Water Solutio
n
Fo
rm a VillageWater Committee
The first step in initiating a cleanwater project is the formulationof a village water committee that
 
will be intimately involvedthroughout the project from theearly planning and constructionstages to the ongoing operations
 
and maintenance of theconstructed facility. This groupwill be thoroughly educated with
 
the adequate skills and providedwith the necessary resources tooversee operations of the well orfacility once the project is
 
completed.
Site Investigation,
 
Technology Selection,
 
& Engineering Design
This stage involves a preliminaryinvestigation of the project site to
 
determine the most effective cleanwater solution considering thelocal conditions. While theconstruction of a borehole is
 
common, other options existincluding the rehabilitation of anorphan borehole, the development
 
of a rainwater harvesting system,
 
the treatment and diversion of a
 
surface water supply, or theconstruction of a hand-dug well.The criteria considered in selectingthe most appropriate technologyinclude reliability and quality of
 
the proposed supply, geographicalconstraints, and associated costs.
F
acility Constructio
n
Once an appropriate technology is
 
selected and the facility has beendesigned, the construction processbegins. This often involves hiringof a third-party contractor, unlessstaff and equipment is availablein-house among the project
 
partners. Construction dura
tion
varies highly depending upon theavailability of resources andmaterials, weather conditions, andtransportation capacity. In Ghan
a,
the construction window typically
 
lasts from January-April to avoidconstruction during the rainyseason.
 
Water Quality Testing
Once the facility is constructed, a
 
water quality sample is taken andsent to a certified laboratory for
 
testing to ensure that it meetsWorld Health Organizationstandards. If the water is testednon-compliant, treatment options
 
must be investigated to remove thecontaminant of concern.
Commissioning& Engineering Repor
t
Finally, the well or other facility iscommissioned and readied forcommunity use. By this time, thevillage water committee has beenfully educated on the proper useand maintenance of the facility.
A
final report is developed by theproject engineer and/or
 
hydrogeologist documenting theconstruction of the well for future
 
reference.
1 month1
month
1 mont
h
1 week3 months
Fo
rm a
 Village
Water Comitte
e
Site Investigation, TechnologySelection, & Engineering Design
F
acility ConstructionCommissioning &Engineering Repor
t
Water Quality Testing
The general process for developing and implementing a clean water solution is
 
sequenced in the timeline below:
of 00

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