Communities near Maai Mahiu, situated in Kenya's Great Rift Valley, face severe water scarcity and poor groundwater quality due to high salinity, fluoride, and mineral contamination from geothermal activity. This ongoing crisis contributes to poor health outcomes, food insecurity, lost educational opportunity, and limited economic development.
In a collaborative effort, local leaders from the villages of Muniu, Ruiru, and Kamuchira formed the MURUKA Community Based Organization (CBO) and identified a sustainable solution: development of a pipeline system to deliver clean, reliable water from a protected highland source to their communities.
This Rotary WASH initiative will fund infrastructure and safe drinking water systems benefiting 18,300+ people in Kenya, including 12,000+ community residents in the Maai Mahiu region and 6,300+ students and staff through targeted school-based water projects.
The project includes construction of a community water delivery system providing reliable access to safe water for the MURUKA communities while emphasizing local ownership, training, capacity building, and long-term sustainability. Three schools within the MURUKA service area will also receive school water kiosks to improve student access to safe water, hygiene, and educational outcomes.
To further expand educational impact, the initiative includes installation of a Reverse Osmosis (RO) + UV purification system at Ndurarua Primary & Junior Secondary School in Nairobi, where more than 6,300 students and staff currently depend on highly alkaline and contaminated borehole water. The system will provide clean drinking water through advanced filtration, storage capacity, water access points, training programs, and sustainability measures designed to improve student health, attendance, and learning outcomes.
By securing reliable access to safe water, the project will:
* Improve public health by reducing reliance on contaminated water sources.
* Improve school attendance, concentration, and educational outcomes through safe drinking water access.
* Reduce vulnerability and food insecurity through improved water availability.
* Stimulate economic opportunity and community resilience tied to water security.
* Strengthen local capacity through community engagement, training, and sustainable operations.
Aligned with Rotary's Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH) Area of Focus, this initiative combines community-scale water infrastructure with school-based safe drinking water systems to create sustainable, measurable impact across rural communities and educational institutions in Kenya. Through strategic partnerships, environmental stewardship, and community leadership, the project aims to serve as a model for long-term, scalable development.
Find more about the project at: https://tinyurl.com/mmwater2025
Need $202,668
This project needs to receive some pledges to go to the next level. Please check the "Financing" tab to see the list of current pledges. Once the amount pledged is equal to the project budget, the status of the project will be automatically changed to "Fully Pledged". Click here to pledge support for this project.
Additional Contribution (not matched by The Rotary Foundation)
$25,000
Total
$330,000
DDF contributions in grey are pending approval of the corresponding district committee.
Note: as of July 1, 2015 there is a 5% additional support fee for cash contributions. This fee does not appear in the financials above because it does not apply if the funds are sent directly to the project account (without going through TRF, and therefore without Paul Harris credit). Clubs sending their cash contribution to TRF must be aware they will have to send an additional 5%.
System Entry: Pledge of $3,000 by WA Carlton of the Rotary Club of Flower Mound, District 5790.
24-Jun-25
by Will Carlton
System Entry: Pledge of $35,000 DDF by Will Carlton of the Rotary Club of Cross Timbers, Flower Mound, District 5790.
5-Feb-26
by Will Carlton
System Entry: Pledge of $15,000 with $7,622 DDF by Will Carlton of the Rotary Club of Cross Timbers, Flower Mound, District 5790.
17-Jun-26
System Entry
System Entry: Pledge of $276,632 with $1,834 DDF by Steffani Anderson of the Rotary Club of Granbury, District 5790. [Updated to $1,834 with $1,834 DDF on 17-Jun-26]
17-Jun-26
System Entry
System Entry: Project is now "Fully Pledged".
19-Jun-26
by Will Carlton
System Entry: Project reverted to "Published".
19-Jun-26
System Entry
System Entry: Pledge of $10,000 with $1,326 DDF by Sean Kelleher of the Rotary Club of Flower Mound, District 5790.
16-Jul-26
System Entry
System Entry: Pledge of $6,081 with $5,406 DDF by Greg Ballantine of the Rotary Club of Lewisville, District 5790.
20-Jul-26
System Entry
System Entry: Pledge of $7,256 with $7,256 DDF by Allen Chick of the Rotary Club of Denton-Lake Cities, District 5790.
20-Jul-26
System Entry
System Entry: Pledge of $7,256 with $7,256 DDF by Allen Chick of the Rotary Club of Denton-Lake Cities, District 5790.
