Water
Donate a water well
A water well gives a whole village clean drinking water close to home. In 2023 we built a well in Muchanga, Uganda, together with forty donors, and more than 3,000 people now fetch their water there every day. You can help make the next well possible: together with others, with a well in someone's name, or as sadaqa jariya.
Updated on
How to take part
Three ways to take part
Together for one well
You give what suits you, and together with other donors we raise the amount for one well. That is how the well in Muchanga was paid for, by forty donors together. You can also form your own group with family, colleagues, a club, a mosque or a church.
A well in someone's name
You donate a whole well, or a large part of one, in your own name, your family's, your company's or that of a loved one who has passed away. In consultation with you, we make sure that name is placed at the well.
As sadaqa jariya
In Islam, a water well is a well-known example of sadaqa jariya, a gift that keeps on giving for as long as people draw water from it. You can give your contribution with that intention, also in the name of a late parent or relative.
In memory of a loved one
A water well in the name of someone who has passed away
A water well donation is also a way to remember someone. Many people give on behalf of a late parent, grandparent or other relative, often as sadaqa jariya: a gift that keeps on giving for as long as water flows from the well.
- Email us the name of your loved one. We will get in touch as soon as fundraising for the next well starts, in the autumn of 2027.
- If you donate a whole well or a large part of one, that name is placed at the well in consultation with you.
- You can give a smaller contribution with the same intention, on your own or together with your family.
- You follow the construction through photos and a dedicated project page, as with the well in Muchanga.
Why water
What difference does a water well make?
Clean drinking water is far from a given in Uganda. In 2024 only 18 per cent of the population had safe drinking water at home: from a good source, on their own premises, available when needed and free from contamination. These are the figures of WHO and UNICEF, published on the UN-Water SDG 6 Data Portal.
Clean water close by
Before the well, Muchanga depended on unsafe water far away. Now there is a tap point in the village, where more than 3,000 people collect clean drinking water every day.
Time for school and work
If you do not have to walk far for water, you have time left for school, work and family. In our photos you mostly see children with jerrycans: they are the ones who fetch the water.
From and for the village
The village uses the well itself and looks after it itself. At the check in August 2024, the community had already replaced broken taps, and a neighbouring village also collects water there.
Honest about money
What does a water well cost?
For the well in Muchanga, with an electric pump, tap house and water tank, the target amount was € 3,800. In the end it cost a little more; the founder paid the difference of a few hundred euros himself. What a new well costs depends on the location and the depth. For every well we first draw up a cost estimate with our permanent partner in Kampala, The Uganda Muslim Supreme Council, and the board approves it before we raise any money. Travel and accommodation costs are paid from a separate expenses fund, so your gift goes to the well itself.
When does the next project start?
2025 and 2026 are deliberate rest years without new projects. We raise money per project: the next project starts after the summer of 2027, in the autumn, and that is when we open the fundraising. Would you like to take part already, on your own or with a group? Email us at info@stichtinghartvoorafrika.nl and we will contact you as soon as the next project starts.
What you get back
What do you get back from us?
You give for something you can see and check. This is what you get back from us.
- Your name at the well, if you wish: by agreement it is placed at the well.
- Photos of the construction, as with the well in Muchanga.
- A dedicated project page with the village, the timeline and the costs.
- An account of every euro in our public annual documents.
- A check on a later trip, as in 2024 in Muchanga.
From well to tap point
How was the well built?
Digging began in mid-July 2023; the founder went down into the well himself. On 1 August the well was dug and sealed, and the tap building went up. In early December 2023 it was finished.
Questions about donating a water well
The questions we are asked most often.
Can I donate a water well in the name of someone who has passed away?
Yes. Many people do this for a late parent or grandparent. Give us the name; in consultation with you, that name is placed at the well.
Can I donate towards one well together with others?
Yes, that is how it went in 2023 as well. You can raise money yourself with family, colleagues, your club or your mosque, and every contribution goes to the same well.
How do I know the well will really be built?
We show how the construction is going with photos, as we did for the well in Muchanga, and we account for every euro in our public annual documents. On a later trip we check earlier projects: in 2024 the well in Muchanga turned out to be in daily use.
How do you choose the village for a well?
Together with our permanent partner in Kampala, The Uganda Muslim Supreme Council, which is in direct contact with villages and families in the region. We knew Muchanga from the food distribution in 2022. The board approves every project before we raise money.
Who maintains the well?
The village itself. At the check in August 2024 we found that the community had replaced broken taps themselves. On a later trip we will look again at how the well is doing.
What do I get back as a donor?
If you wish, your name is placed at the well by agreement. You also see photos of the construction, a dedicated project page and the account in our public annual documents.
How long does it take to build a well?
For the well in Muchanga, digging started in mid-July 2023 and the well was finished in early December. The digging itself went quickly; the pump, the tap building and sorting out agreements that were not kept took more time. For a next well we will plan more time for that.
What is sadaqa jariya?
In Islam, sadaqa jariya is ongoing charity: a gift that others benefit from for a long time, such as clean water. You do not have to be Muslim to take part; anyone can support a well.
Our first well
The well in Muchanga
Want to know what a water well donation achieves? Here are the facts about our first well at a glance.
| Location | Muchanga (Lweza), Kampala region, Uganda |
|---|---|
| Local partner | The Uganda Muslim Supreme Council |
| Fundraising | June 2023, a campaign by the founder shortly before the foundation was established on 28 July 2023 |
| Donations | 40 through the bank, plus cash gifts from family and the community |
| Target amount | € 3,800 (UGX 15,180,000); the well cost a little more, and the founder paid the difference |
| Construction | Mid July to early December 2023 |
| Built | Well with an electric pump, tap house, water tank and tiled tap point |
| Reach | Three to four thousand residents, and a neighbouring village as well |
| Last check | August 2024: in daily use, broken taps replaced by the community itself |
Take part in the next water well
Email us and we will contact you as soon as the next water project starts.