Muslim Global Relief (MGR), a Muslim organization based in the UK in collaboration with the Rural-Urban Charitable organization, has handed over a borehole to the community of Brikama Dasilameh on the 13th of November 2022 at the Darsilameh.
Speaking at the event, Mr Lamin Jobe, the Country Director of MGR based in the Gambia said this project is called Water For Life, and it started its operation by digging local wells for communities. But later government recommended the need to change from local wells to boreholes to ensure access to clean and safe drinking water.
He stated that this was the latest policy introduced by the government that any donor agent should endeavor to provide boreholes with a minimum of (25) meters in depth.
According to Mr. Jobe this policy is trying to map out all the water points in the country and all the communities and villages drinking water, and it has been a problem that some communities are given wells by NGOs and other charitable organizations, and some of this wells are not properly done when day sink the wells up to one-meter water level they leave it there and go.
He continued that when the community starts using the well for two to three months it will dry out while it is recorded in the government system that the particular community has a well. While the local well is not a standard and not fit for public consumption.
He cited that the government also realised that open water wells are associated with a lot of hazards “we all know our communities” and we all know how we leave apart from the natural contamination to the open wells people can dump anything into the wells and people will come and throw any kind of juju and can also attract bacteria among others contaminated virus.
So it is even a miracle that people are not suffering from water bond diseases all the time that’s why the government said to let the donors shift from open water wells to a borehole or if you are giving open water well it has to have a standard”
For his part the National Assembly Member for Brikama South Hon. Lamin J Ceesay said it is indeed a great pleasure for him to be part of this official handing over of a borehole to the community of Dasilameh.
On behalf of the entire community of Darsilameh, he thanked the Muslim
Global Relief and Rural-Urban Charitable organization as partners that funded the project.
He said “it is a fundamental human right for every human being on earth” and studies have been done to look at the particular area of Darsilameh where in certain compounds you have open wells it can contaminate any contagious disease”.
For his part, the Alkalo of Dasilameh, Anusumana Sanyang on behalf of the beneficiaries thanked the donors for this laudable gesture.
