Promoting development by access to water and to education

Access to water in Sinthian and Wassadou

The nonprofit Le Kinkeliba, founded in 1995, is essentially active in the remote eastern region of Tambacounda in Sénégal. The nonprofit, which takes its name from a plant that produces a beverage with medicinal virtues, has 140 members including 80 health professionals, mostly doctors, surgeons, pharmacists, biologists and dentists. In 1998, Le Kinkeliba created a first medical center in the village of Sinthian. It then coordinated the construction of a second medical center in Wassadou, in order to provide basic healthcare to the isolated populations of the region.

On several occasions in 2003, Veoliaforce volunteers helped Le Kinkeliba supply these two new centers with water: by replacing a submersible pump in the well supplying the Sinthian medical unit; and providing technical and operational support for drilling the well at the new Wassadou unit. The Veolia Development Aid Unit also helped disinfect nearly 200 wells infected by flooding due to heavy winter rainfall in 2003, in cooperation with the Tambacounda national hygiene department.

Inauguration in the presence of the President of the Republic of Senegal

In early 2004, Le Kinkeliba sought funding from the Veolia foundation in order to push ahead with the development of the hydraulic infrastructures in the rural area surrounding the medical center of Sinthian and to improve those of Wassadou.

At Sinthian, the new project required deepening an old village well, sinking new ones, and equipping them with pumps. These developments were supplemented with the construction of family latrines in the villages, with schools the top priority.

At the same time, the association has decided to safeguard the water supply of the new Wassadou health Center, by sinking a deep borehole equipped with pumps, connected to a water tower and an internal distribution network. The overall complex, supplemented with a wastewater collection system and septic tank, was completed under the supervision and with the technical assistance of the teams of Veoliaforce, with the work entrusted to local contractors.

On November 30, 2005, in recognition of the work accomplished, the new health center of Wassadou was inaugurated by the President of the Republic of Senegal, Abdoulaye Wade, his wife, Philippe Douste-Blazy, the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the special Representative of the UN secretary for West Africa, Amedhou Ould Abdallah.

The results are impressive: in 2008, the medical center completed 8573 consultations including 5750 new cases and 1315 vaccinations. In one year, 423 persons were hospitalized and 114 outings organized for consultations in the bush. Since then, in consideration of the quality of the development provided to this region of Senegal by Le Kinkeliba, the Veolia foundation has supported its action once again by funding a kindergarten in Niéménéké.

Welcoming the kiddies to make spare time for the mommies

In the neighboring village of Niemeneke, 15 km from the medical home of Wassadou, it has decided to build a kindergarten for 143 children.
This project comprises three classrooms, a roofed central playground and a sanitary unit.

To guarantee the future school's access to water, a nearby well was first identified. However, it seemed preferable to have a water source specific to the school. The Veolia foundation decided to renew its support for the initiatives launched by Le Kinkeliba by financing this new water input. The 8000 euros granted were used to finance the construction of a 16-meter deep well, equipped with a hand pump and a mini-water tower. The elements of hygiene learned during class time were thus applied immediately.