$401 to $500

Community Description
The community of Sahambavy, located in the southern highlands of Madagascar, consists of approximately 17,000 people spread across 10 villages. Sahambavy is known for all of the tea production in Madagascar, is a stop on one of the last operating train routes in country, and has a hotel to accommodate travelers.

The village of Amindratombo is located about 7 km away from the center of the commune with a population of about 1,500 people. It has a primary school that houses grades 1-5 and the students range from 5 to 10 years old.

A previous well project, under the direction of Peace Corps Volunteer Tisa Kunkee, the Amindratombo School Well Project – Madagascar, was just completed at the same primary school. Now the students and neighboring villagers have a clean water source, but the students still use the woods nearby as a bathroom. Most of the primary schools do not have latrines, including this one, which contaminates farming fields and other water sources available to the village.

Project Description
This project is to build 2 latrines at the primary school in the village of Amindratombo. The latrines will be built within one structure, one for the students and one for the teachers.

Project funds will be used to purchase and transport the following materials: bricks, cement, wood, mortar, sand, paint, sheet metal and locks.

During the previous well project, the technicians dug 20+ meters but hit rock, leaving a big empty hole. This hole will now be used for the latrines.

The technicians will dig angles so that both latrines will empty into the one hole. The major part of the project will be purchasing and transporting the materials to the site and building the latrine structure.

Labor and equipment costs are included in the budget as well. The same technician from the well project will manage the latrine project. Bricks, nails, cement and paint left over from the well project will be used for the latrines.

An opening ceremony for the well and latrines will follow the completion of the latrines where an educational session will be given about the links of diarrheal diseases, latrines, handwashing, clean water, and health.

Project Impact
200+ students and 3 teachers will directly benefit from the project. Indirect beneficiaries will be the approximately 1,500 villagers.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Tisa Kunkee

Comments
This project is necessary for the health and wellbeing of the students and staff at the school. It utilizes the existing hole for the storage of waste and leftover materials to build the latrines. The latrines serve to protect the environment, and specifically the water source.

Dollar Amount of Project
$495.00

Donations Collected to Date
$0.00

ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW

Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you "naming rights", if that is something you would like.

Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.

Dollar Amount Needed
$495.00

Community Description
The high rural Guatemalan community of Los Perez only recently acquired the formal status of caserio (village). The community is located at 2,500 meters of elevation (approx. 8,100 feet), and is home to 20 families, who are all mostly interrelated.

Most adults have a respectable command of basic conversational Spanish, but all speak Kaq'chi'quel as their daily language. A typical recent social pattern here has been that young people looking for their own farmland have moved uphill out of the more easily farmed but thoroughly occupied valleys.

This means that they farm on VERY steep fields, which is arduous, less productive (yield-per-acre,) and more than a little dangerous in rainy season, due to the prevalent geological tendency for landslides that take away recently cleared farmland.

About three years ago, Los Perez achieved recognition as a formal political presence when it received approval to create its own school. The new school saves community children from a daily round trip hike to their previous school of about 8 hilly kilometers, but it also provides this young town with a community center, a place for a new community to focus its pride.

Most school children complete at least fourth grade, with many graduating from primary school in the sixth grade, and some few continuing on to middle school in the municipio.

Last year, the mayor and municipality provided for construction of a new block classroom with lamina roof and concrete floor, a development project that was sought and supported by community leaders, with labor provided willingly by the whole community.

The school is located on a steep hillside, and the latrine pit is excavated into an area of landfill. This is commonly understood here to be a dangerous method for waste disposal, because liquid waste is continually added to an area of less stable terrain.

Already there exists the hazard of landslides during the rainy season. In 2010 a family of 9 in an adjacent community was killed in such a natural disaster. A different school in this municipality built such a latrine in similar terrain 4 years ago, and the pit collapsed after 2 rainy seasons.

Project Description
This project is to replace an inadequate and unsafe 3-seat pit latrine with 3 flush toilets.

The project will be implemented the direction of the Junto Escolar of Los Perez (equivalent of an American PTA) and the Los Perez COCODE (community development officials ).

The septic system to receive the waste from these toilets is already half built, consisting of a 5-meter deep drainage pit built to handle the greywater runoff from the handwashing station. Another pit will be dug beside it and connected with two concrete tubes at the bottom and an egress near the surface.

Demonstrating their foresight, the community has already acquired and installed 3" drainage tubing to handle fecal waste (instead of the cheaper 2" tubing sufficient for greywater) in anticipation of this upgrade.

There is an adequate water supply for flush toilets, even during the dry season. A small rooftop water storage tank will be installed to feed the toilets during the day and to fill up during the off-peak hours of water usage in the community.

Project funds will pay for all required materials and appliances, including concrete and rebar to build a safety cover, a concrete collar for the new septic pit, and all the necessary connecting tubing. Also included will be a small shipping charge to have cement and toilets delivered to the community.

All labor will be provided by members of the community, who will also provide needed sand and gravel.

Project Impact
100 residents of Los Perez will benefit from the project, including the 33 students and 2 teachers at the school.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Dercum Over

Comments
The flush toilet system will serve to remove the dangerous condition of the improperly built latrines. Drainage tubes will carry away all of the watery waste to a septic pit 20 meters downhill, thereby eliminating the landslide potential.

Dollar Amount of Project
$448.80

Donations Collected to Date
$0.00

ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW

Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you "naming rights", if that is something you would like.

Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.

Dollar Amount Needed
$448.80

Community Description
Keur Amadou Diop is located in the rural community of Patar Lia, the district of Gossas, the arrondissment the Ouadiour, and the region of Fatick. Although Keur Amadou Diop is within the radius of the Boustane cluster, it is not part of the village cluster, and is itself a four compound cluster comprised of 5 families.

The compound has an important male figure who is considered a village chief, but also as a "substitute" marabout. Keur Amadou Diop shares many activities and affairs with Boustane Diaw and Boustane Diop, as well as many other surrounding villages. For example, the children from Keur Amadou Diop who are able and allowed to go to school will attend the primary school in Boustane Diaw.

The health hut in Boustane Diaw is also a facility shared, as Keur Amadou Diop villagers will go there for medical advice, simple medical check-ups, and minor treatments.

Keur Amadou Diop has itself a functioning robine just steps away and shares the 60 meter deep well with Boustane Diop, though they will often come with donkey- drawn charettes and draw water from the robine in Boustane Diaw.

The people in Keur Amadou Diop, like their Boustane counterparts, are subsistence farmers, growing primarily peanuts and harvesting millet and hibiscus during the farming season. Some families even share the same plot of land. The husbands head out to cities or towns for other work once the farming season is over to generate more income for their families.

A recent development is that a few of the women in Keur Amadou Diop are learning alphabetization with the women in Boustane Diop to help better themselves and their children. As for the children and teenagers, they help out with whatever is deemed necessary for them to do.

There is only one "functioning" latrine in Keur Amadou Diop, belonging strictly to the "substitute" marabout. Therefore, the majority of villagers, especially the children, will walk into the bush or away from their fields to defecate. Often though, the children will not even bother with going to the bush and defecate directly behind their compounds. This contributes to the oral-fecal cycle of diarrheal diseases, poor hygiene, and lowers the overall health of the compound and nearby villages.

Project Description
This project will construct 7 pit-style, brick lined latrines. The project itself will provide one latrine for each "family" (four) in the compound, but will also cover the remaining latrines left in the villages of Boustane Diaw (one, for the wives of the marabout and their children) and Boustane Diop (two, the "talibe" boys' dormitory and one other family).

The villagers will dig 2-meter by 2-meter holes, 2 meters deep. Each hole will then be covered by a cement slab.

The design of these latrines will provide great stability and protection. In addition, the latrines are built in the manner that when one pit fills, the cement platform can simply be lifted and moved on top of a newly dug pit.

Project funds will be used to pay the mason for building the latrines, the brick makers, and to purchase and transport the supplies necessary for construction: 5 cement bags, 3 iron bars, and a pipe for ventilation per latrine.

The villagers will be responsible for digging their own holes, providing sand and gravel to mix with the cement to make the bricks, and will provide an agreed amount as contribution to the project.

A program is being developed to focus on proper hygiene and the proper care of latrines.

Project Impact
About 145 people will benefit from the project.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Albert Vang

Comments
Through this project, the sanitary conditions of the village will be much improved by the elimination of open defecation.

Albert previously successfully completed the Boustane Diaw Latrine Project - Senegal and the Boustane Diop Latrine Project - Senegal.

Dollar Amount of Project
$555.00

Donations Collected to Date
$60.00

ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW

Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you "naming rights", if that is something you would like.

Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.

Dollar Amount Needed
$495.00

Community Description
Paquip is a new community, recently independent of Santa Clara La Laguna. There are about 500 residents.

Men generally work as carpenters and women work in their homes. Many husbands and fathers are working in the United States. The community is extremely poor, living and working in harsh, basic conditions in the home and in their schools.

Escuela Oficial Rural Mixta Triunfo La Paz has 104 students, ranging from 4 to 16 years old, in grades K through 6. There are seven teachers.

Presently, there is only one faucet at the school, making it extremely difficult for the students to wash their hands and brush their teeth.

Project Description
This project is to construct a handwashing station at the school. The station will have 10 faucets, allowing for the expected growth of the community.

The water will be piped to the station from a pila, which is a sink that holds water. There is also a tank at the school. This will ensure water supply even throughout the dry season.

The carpenter will construct the cement sink and 10 faucets. He will also be responsible for connecting the water to the new location, which will be right by the bathrooms. This will ensure the children leave the bathroom and have their handwashing station accessible.

The school will seek certification under the Healthy Schools program, a partnership between Peace Corps and the government. This project will put them into compliance with the requirements for adequate facilities for washing hands before eating and after going to the bathroom and brushing teeth after eating snack.

The principal of the school is a very intelligent young woman who is on board with the program and she is leading her team of teachers in the implementation of the project.

Project Impact
111 people will benefit from the project.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Grace Williams

Comments
This project will bring about bring sustainable water infrastructure to the school. Under the Healthy Schools program, healthy habits and hygiene will be promoted, and daily routines and practices will be implemented to ensure better health and better lives in general for the students and the teachers.

Grace previously completed the La Rancheria Handwashing Station Project - Guatemala.

Dollar Amount of Project
$500.00

Donations Collected to Date
$0.00

ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW

Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you "naming rights", if that is something you would like.

Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.

Dollar Amount Needed
$500.00

Community Description
The village of Peresecina is nestled between the municipality capital, Orhei, and the capital city of Moldova, Chisinau. The community is deemed by many citizens of Moldova as “the biggest village in Moldova,” boasting (on paper) approximately 8,000 inhabitants.

The reality is that many of the community members between the ages of 20 and 50 are living and working abroad in order to provide for their families in Moldova. The majority of inhabitants left in Peresecina work in either Chisinau or Orhei. Very few find work locally unless they are teachers or local government employees.

The community’s main economy is agriculture, boasting a mushroom factory and agricultural cooperative which provides services and supplies to local farmers. The other major businesses consist primarily of small stores along the road which connects Orhei to Chisinau.

Aside from the main highway, the infrastructure consists of washed-out dirt roads and unreliable electricity. It is surprising however with all of these negative factors, the people of Peresecina are very happy, hospitable and open to new ideas.

There is a public office building, used as a building for several public and private organizations and businesses, occupied by 25 employees who service an average of 1,000 people per month. Activities include meetings for several clubs, community meetings, and seminars.

The nearest bathroom facility, an existing outhouse located a 15-minute-walk away, is shared by an auto repair shop, and all of the offices in the building. It is located inside a locked fence and during the winter months this can be extremely challenging as it is up hill, through brush and mounds of unused sand, dirt and stone from the nearby construction site. There is also a large dog that guards the area and if someone is not there to chain the dog and unlock the fence the bathroom cannot be used.

Project Description
This project is to construct a community bathroom in a public building in Peresecina. The bathroom will be located in a building next to the mayor's office, attached to the post office and situated in the middle of town. The building houses the gas office, where all patrons must go to pay their bills, the public library, a second-hand clothing store, a hair salon, an agricultural extension organization/business information center, and an agricultural store.

Every Sunday the local outdoor market where farmers go to sell their harvests occur directly outside of this building. In the hallway outside of the agricultural organization's office there is a location where running water can be hooked up. There is a well with a generator outside the building to the west, and a link to the waste water collection/sewer system that the mayor's office is connected to.

This bathroom will essentially be connected to already existing fresh and waste water systems from within the hallway of a building. Three walls will be built around the bathroom to enclose it, with only enough room for a sink and a toilet.

Piping from the well into the building and from the toilet and sink out to the waste water collection tank (which is then dumped and taken to the waste water collection plant near the capital city of Moldova about 30 minutes away) will be purchased and installed.

Project funds will be used to purchase the sink, toilet, piping, wood and drywall for building walls, tiling for the floors and walls, toilet paper, hand soap, and a door.

A local carpenter and plumber will complete the project on a volunteer basis (as he is frequently in town and often having to relieve himself in the field).

Project Impact
The project will benefit the 25 people employed in the building, the 1,000 people per month who use the services, and possibly an equal number of people who visit the market.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Emily Getty

Comments
This bathroom provides critical services for employees in the public building, along with people who visit the building for services, to attend the market, or patronize the stores in the center of town. It will greatly improve the sanitation and hygiene of the community, decreasing illness and providing comfort to the people.

Dollar Amount of Project
$555.00

Donations Collected to Date
$100.00

ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW

Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you "naming rights", if that is something you would like.

Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.

Dollar Amount Needed
$455.00