Water
for all
Water
FOR ALL
Burundi
Burundi – a small, landlocked country in East Africa – is one of the poorest countries in the world and still recovering from decades of ethnic conflict. It is poorly developed and, although water is abundant, about half the population does not have access to a clean, safe supply of water.
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Burundi is the most densely populated country in the region and the population is rising rapidly. Despite the many obstacles, the people show great resilience, strength, determination, and hope. The majority are subsistence farmers, nestled between lush, rolling mountains, where they grow food, make bricks, and do their best to survive.
Burundi has abundant water sources. The capital city, Bujumbura, is on the shores of Lake Tanganyika, the second-largest freshwater lake in the world. There is good, accessible groundwater in most parts of the country. Although water is plentiful, it is inaccessible to most people.
Vision
As a Christ centered organization, Amazi Water is the primary implementer of water projects in Burundi, working to provide sustainable access to clean water in every community by 2028.
20·20·100
Mission
20 litres of water
per person per day.
Within a 20-minute
walk from home.
For 100% of Burundi
communities.
20·20·100
Water Systems
A basic, single hand-pump system can supply water to a thousand people per day. Our preference is solar-powered, submersible pump system technology with connected tanks and taps where possible. These larger, more sophisticated systems deliver much higher yields, serve double or triple the amount of people and are easier to maintain.
As of mid 2022, we have installed over 600 systems across Burundi, providing clean water to around 1.6 million people. Thanks to our dedicated maintenance team and local community involvement, our wells are operational 95% of the time.
Amazi Water is about more than ‘just’ installing wells – we are committed to growing skills. We employ and train local people whose expertise rapidly develops.
The Church
These communities need so much more than water. People are poor, tired from trying to survive, and ready for change. We believe God wants to provide for these people through the Church. We try to include the local Christian community whenever possible.
We also encourage local pastors, share the Gospel and distribute Bibles in the local Kirundi language. Seeing people come to faith in Christ brings great joy to us. Our daily efforts are to honor Christ and see Him glorified in everything we do.
The
impact
The
Impact
My name is Joseph Girukwayo, I am 64 years old. I live in the Rutana Province of Burundi, Africa.
I am an old man. I have seen many things in my life because of the lack of clean water. Before we received this water well, we walked 5 km to get clean water. You can imagine an old man like me in that life. I was not able to walk the distance, so I had to pay a young man to fetch water for me. It was not easy to find the money.
I saw some of my livestock die because of dirty water. The teacher at school sent our children home because they were late. You cannot imagine how painful it is to finally have food to cook but no clean water to cook it in.
As you can see, today I am clean, I get water near my house, I can pump water that I need, and my hygiene is good. The community is using this water to grow vegetables to feed their family. It will improve our life and health.
I hope to live more years because of this well. The well is our treasure, and we will care for it.”
“My name is Jocelyne Bayisabe. I live in Giharo Commune, which is in the Province of Rutana in Burundi, Africa. I am 27 years old and married. Before having access to clean water from the borehole, we used water from the river.
In our community, we lost 3 children when they were going to get water in the river. They drowned. The first one died in 2016, the second in 2018 and the third just four months ago. It was a painful time for our community.
It seemed we were a forgotten people. I cannot even explain all the sickness we faced during that time. Parasites, diarrhea, typhoid, and other diseases were common in the community because of the lack of clean water.
The day we heard from the Amazi Water staff that we were getting a well was a happy day! We were overcome with emotion. With this clean water that we have now, we are drinking it, we are cooking with it. We can grow vegetables for our family which is improving our health. Our kids are attending school without being late because the water is so close by now.”
“My name is Fabien Ngendabanka. I am among the water committee members as a technician. I live in Bukemba Commune in the province of Rutana. I am 35 years old, and my main activity is agriculture. We used to get our water from a small river in our community. We faced many diseases for a long time from the lack of clean water, such as parasites, cholera, diarrhea, and skin diseases.
It was impossible to wash our clothes properly because we used dirty water. We also used this dirty river water to wash our bodies. We walked more than 10km to access clean water in an adjacent village. in my family, when we decided to send our children to get clean water, the decision affected their schooling because no child can get water at more than 10km and go to school. Even when we had food to cook, the issue was with what water would we cook; and then clean our kitchen things?
When we first met with the Amazi Water staff, we all realized it was going to be impossible to access the chosen drill site.
As a community we promised to clear the access road. We spent the whole week from 4:00am to 6:00pm clearing the access road. Some people had to give up portions of their land to create this road. We cleared more than 2km to ensure that the rig could access the drill site. We were ready to do everything we could to have clean water in our community.
Now that we can get clean water from the hand pump, we are very happy. We drink the clean water that the pump provides; and we enjoy it! Life has totally changed in terms of hygiene, education, and health. Our commitment is to protect our well, to improve our hygiene, to help people to know how to use the pump and to contribute to the maintenance.”
Values
Collaboration
“Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly…” Romans 12:6
Commitment
“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men.”
Colossians 3:23
Impact
“The King will reply: ‘Truly I tell you. Whatever you did for one of the least of these, you did for me.”
Matthew 25:40
Integrity
“Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but whoever takes crooked paths will be found out.”
Matthew 25:4
self-development
“All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.” 2 Timothy 3:16
History
2015
StartUp
The Peake family visit Burundi for 3 months. They pray & connect with local people. Things go well & the first wells are constructed. An attempted coup creates unrest and the Peakes return to the US.
2016
Partnership
The Peake and Vanman families form a partnership to make clean water available throughout Burundi by 2028.
2017
Move
The Peake family completes their mission training and officially moves to Burundi.
2018
Roots
We build a team and cement partnerships with the Burundi government and other NGOs. Drilling increases; hygiene training and water quality testing are added to the program.
2019
Growth
The work expands and we adopt the name Amazi Water.
2020
Challenges
A hard year with COVID-19 and other difficulties. Drilling slows down.
2021
Flow
Doors are re-opened, the green light is given, the Amazi team grows to 150 people. 525 water systems are installed across Burundi by the end of 2021.
2022
Upgrade
The NEW Amazi Headquarters is completed. All 6 drilling rigs purchased. All departments built out. Staff grew to 200.
···
Future
Amazi Water will continue to monitor and evaluate our systems and approach and build strategic partnerships to amplify the impact. We will expand water quality testing and hygiene training. Constructed wells will be maintained and upgraded. Amazi Water will develop a technical training school which will serve to empower and equip many. We will continue to focus on prayer and discipleship. We will always put God first.