Date: 76/207/2022

To: happywater.org members

From: happywater.org president
Subject: Distribute Water to Ugandan Families
Action Required: Respond if Interested

This memo is a follow-up to the email, offering a work opportunity in Uganda. It contains
general knowledge, provides information about what we will be doing in Uganda, and
the general work plan we will follow.

Water is an essential substance for humans. We must drink 2 liters daily to maintain our
bodies working as intended. We also use it to shower, wash clothes, and do other
activities.
Even though it is essential for human living, it is scarce, and some countries haven't
been able to keep up with the rapid growth of their population. This is the case in
Uganda, a country where its population has increased fast and is having issues
accessing fresh water to a degree where some must walk 40 minutes to a different town
to fill up buckets of water and take them back home. Our goal as happywater.org is to
facilitate access to fresh water in small communities that need it.

Summary

Freshwater scarcity is an issue that has gained attention in the last couple of decades.
2.5% of Earth's water is fresh, but only 1.2% is accessible. The other is locked up in ice
or underground. With the rapid increase of the human population and many water
systems being dried up due to global warming or contamination, most countries face
issues where their population doesn't have easy access to fresh water. Uganda is one
of these countries. Some of their citizens must walk 40 minutes to other towns to fill up
buckets of water and bring back to their families.
Happywater.org is planning a work trip to Uganda to help its population by constructing
wells in strategic points where families will not need to walk long distances to access
fresh water. During the construction we will be distributing freshwater to the citizens.
Uganda needs freshwater

Uganda has seen rapid growth in its population during the last two decades. Its rapid
growth has caused issues such as a lack of sanitation services and access to water.
61.1% of Ugandans don't have access to fresh water. Due to freshwater scarcity, some
families pay 22 percent of their income to water vendors. Paying such a high
percentage of their income for water limits their saving causing them to live in poverty.
Those who don't have enough money to pay for this service have to walk to other cities
to fill up buckets with water for their families. Others must use water from unsafe places
that are contaminated, resulting in diseases such as cholera, diarrhea, dysentery,
hepatitis A, typhoid, and polio that cause millions of deaths each year.
Happywater.org is looking for members available for a work trip to Uganda, where we
will be helping by building wells and distributing fresh water while they are under
construction.

Solution

Group 1

Members assigned to group one will oversee constructing wells strategically placed
approximately 2 kilometers apart in north, south, east, and west directions. The idea is
to fill in a square that covers 10 kilometers squared. This way, someone who lives
where the project will take place will have to walk a maximum of 1 kilometer to access
water and a kilometer to get back to their house. A healthy person can walk 2 kilometers
in 20 minutes. The average amount of time it takes a Ugandan to access a freshwater
source is 40 minutes without counting the walk back. This would drastically decrease
that time and will give access to a water supply that is not contaminated. It would also
help by decreasing the number of people who get diseases from contaminated water.
In total, we will construct 25 wells adding up to a ten-kilometer squared area where
everyone will have easy access to water.
Group 2

Members assigned to group 2 will recollect and distribute water while the wells are
under construction. You will be tasked with filling up trucks with water and driving back
to the city to distribute it.

Conclusion

Uganda is a rapidly growing country facing an issue affecting more than half of its
population. Not having easy access to fresh water is a cause of stress that must be
solved soon. Most Ugandan families pay 22% for water, causing most of them to live in
poverty. Those who don't have the resources to pay for water have resulted in unsafe
water. Unsafe water can be polluted, which causes diseases that can result in death.
The solution presented in this memo will help Ugandan families by giving them easy
access to a safe source of fresh water that they can use whenever they want. They
would only have to walk 10 minutes to the well and back home. The wells will cover 10
kilometers squared which would help around five to ten thousand people.

Recommendation

This project combines a long and short-term solution to the water issues in Uganda.
Distributing water during the well's construction is a short-term solution to help alleviate
some of the pressure the population must find and access a water source. The
construction of 25 wells will take some time since it needs heavy machinery to dig holes
to find water underground.
Team members who decide that want to go to this work trip opportunity must notify their
available times and the group they want to participate in.
References

https://water.org/our-impact/where-we-work/uganda/#:~:text=Uganda's%20water
%20and%20sanitation%20crisis&text=7%20million%20Ugandans%20lack
%20access,access%20water%20from%20water%20vendors. (June 22, 2022)

https://lifewater.org/blog/uganda-water-crisis/ (June 22, 2022)