Myra’s Wells has now provided 148 wells in Burkina Faso – you can see the full list by clicking this link. We give God thanks for the His amazing provision that has made this possible. And we also thank our wonderful generous supporters for their amazing help. But pumps have to be maintained. Enter the Chef de la Pompe.
When the first wells were being drilling, we were still finding our feet. But over the course of time, we have realised that we need to make sure that someone is responsible for making sure the pump is properly maintained. The lingua franca in Burkina Faso is French. So, the certificates we present say “Chef de la Pompe”. People in Burkina Faso love certificates.
Benda Toega
Benda Toega is a suburb of Ouagadougou – about 5 miles out of the centre. The only source of water near to them was an open well. The district is heavily populated and the open well was not really adequate. In the dry season over our winter, it dried up.
The only way of getting water then was to be up very early and go a long way to another suburb and wait patiently at the pump there.
A proper well at last
Just a year ago, in March 2018, Myra’s Wells provided a well at Benda Toega. In January 2019, some of Myra’s Wells trustees were able to visit the village and see the well for themselves. The well was drilled in memory of John’s wife Sylvia. It is a busy well. It is 53 metres deep and has a flow rate of 10,000 litres per hour. That is a huge supply of clean water which will not dry up. The ladies – it is nearly always the ladies – are working their way through the pile of containers. Each one will be filled up. They usually take at least 3 back home with them each time they come to the well.
Who is the Chef de la Pompe here?
Here she is! Did we say “She”? Yes, we did. We had always thought of it as being something the men would do. But it is the ladies who use the pump and this lady is very good at the job. She will collect a small fee from the others who use the pump so that she has some cash in case they need to do repairs that cost money. Normally, this will not be needed. The pumps are easy to maintain and very rarely breakdown – unless they are misused. But it is good to be prepared in case something happens. The Chef de la Pompe is a highly trusted person who the people in the village know will do a good job. To be selected for the job is seen as a real privilege.
There was something else at Benda Toega as well
You can read about it on this link. But in brief, one man has seen a “gap in the market”! There are always people wanting to build little houses to live in. They need bricks. So, with a reliable source of water, he has set-up a bricking making business!
