Project Overview
El Jiote is located in San Bernardo, Namasigue, which is in the dry southern region of Honduras. People in El Jiote frequently suffer from the flu, asthma, and diarrheal disease, most of which result from a lack of adequate hygiene and sanitation infrastructure. Many of these health issues arise from a lack of proper water and hygiene infrastructure, sanitation practices, healthcare, and education resources.
El Jiote, Honduras
El Jiote had an obsolete gravity water system that reaches 20 households in the community. The water source for this system was a spring near the community, but the dam for the system was in poor condition. Since the system was constructed in 1998, it was very outdated and in bad condition. The system had a poor water flow rate of two gallons per minute because the distribution network was not pressurized. Additionally, the water storage tank can only hold 3,500 gallons, which was not sufficient to serve the needs of the community. Community members who had access to this water used a filtration system within their home as the water was not chlorinated by the existing Water Council. This water had tested positive for bacteria and coliforms, which are contributed to the presence of water-borne illnesses in the community.
Global Brigades conducted a study and presented community leaders with an engineering design for a water system.
Water System Solution
Global Brigades built a pump system in El Jiote. Since the mayor of Namasigue already constructed a well for the community, Global Brigades constructed a new 15,000 gallon water storage tank with 3 independent pipelines for the distribution network for each sector of the community. The tank is built at a higher location in order to improve the water pressure.
Global Brigades established a partnership with Fundesur in January of 2017 in the community of El Jiote. Fundesur took on the task of building a water system.
Global Brigades conducted trainings with the existing Water Council in the community. The Council is responsible for monitoring and maintaining the wells and pump. Additionally, Global Brigades trained a Basic Sanitation Committee, which work to share information with community members on the importance of clean water and proper sanitation and hygiene practices. Together, the Water Council and the Basic Sanitation Committee oversee all aspects of the construction of the water system in El Jiote. They ensure that the system is used and maintained responsibly.
Water Project Stages
This project was completed in March 2018.