Engagement in Practice: Building Community Capacity and Relationships through Rainwater Harvesting Initiatives – Tanzania

Abstract

BACKGROUND The World Health Organization (UNICEF and WHO, 2012), estimates that over 750 million people do not have access to simple potable-water service, while over two billion people, a majority of whom live in rural areas, utilize contaminated water. An example of a community like this is Marwa Village located in the Kilimanjaro region of Tanzania. In Marwa, the Pangani River is the most reliable water source for the community. Most residents travel three to six kilometers to the Pangani River daily to obtain water for domestic use. Even though this river has an abundance of water, human capacity limits the amount of water that can be carried home, in addition the water is unfortunately contaminated with bacteria, pathogens, and pollutants. The inability to access a sufficient quantity of clean water is one of the greatest factors hampering sustainable community and economic development of this region. Tanzania consist of over 100 different tribes that share common cultural practices and language. The community members of Marwa are predominantly progressive Maasai, but the population also includes people from both the Chagga and Pare tribes. The Maasai have historically been a nomadic, pastoralist society; however, the Tanzanian and Kenyan governments have been applying pressure to their Maasai communities to establish permanent settlements due to concerns with grazing and property rights (McCabe, Leslie, & DeLuca, 2010). In 2015, the population was estimated to be between 3,500 and 4,500. More recent estimates from local NGO Kilimanjaro Hope Organization (KiHO) suggests the village population at approximately 5,000 with the expectation that it will continue to grow.