Fresh Water for HapFam

Thanks to a grant from the U.S. organization Friends of Liberia, HapFam will be performing some essential infrastructure upgrades on their center in the heart of the Bassa Town, Paynesville community outside of Monrovia.

The pictures featured in this blog post are from the early stages of digging the well, and we look forward to receiving photos of the students and staff enjoying the completed project.  The Niapele Project is so happy to be a part of HapFam’s first major self-managed project implementation.

The leadership of HapFam developed the budget, oversaw the planning phases and is now managing the ongoing implementation of the project, taking care to ensure the actual costs meet the projected budget and a timely completion.

Currently, there is no public water or sanitation system in the community where HapFam is located. Typically, privately owned handpumps and water sellers are responsible for providing the community with the water they need to drink, cook and clean. The necessity of access to a free and abundant source of water for the Center is clear, but this project benefits HapFam on other levels as well:

• The Center plans to generate some income to maintain its operations by selling water in the community. As one of the main objectives of HapFam is to promote a positive attitude towards the disabled and fight stigma in the community, this business model provides ample opportunity for interaction and advocacy.
• Health and hygiene are a primary area of focus of the Daily Living Activities for each student at HapFam.  Mastering these tasks will empower these children to achieve more independence in their lives and encourages them to live in good health and with dignity.

The handpump project is part of HapFam's and our commitment to building a grassroots organization which can serve as a model for other community-based groups dealing with children with disablities.