The Water Committee in Kalma Camp that keeps the whole water system running does a great job. That’s why our team knew we could rely on the committee for another important task…
The water points around Kalma run on-demand. When someone is done filling up their water jug or jerrican, the water turns off – so there isn’t a lot of wasted water. Nonetheless, with so many people using the water points, there’s always overflow and water puddles around most water sources.
That gave our team an idea. “It’s always muddy,” said Yousif, who works on our water team. “Why don’t we plant some fruit trees here to soak up the water overflow.”
It seemed like a great way to make use of a precious resource and provide a service to the community – fruit and shade at the water points. And when we heard that our budget was enough to plant several trees at each water point, it was a no-brainer.
Our logistics team headed to a nursery where they bought two hundred mango trees and two hundred lime trees. And then they brought them back out to Kalma for the Water Committee to distribute and plant at all of the camps water points.
“It will be nice for the community to share this fruit,” said Yousif. “And I think we’ll see the community begin to gather in these shady spots, once the trees grow.”
