Guest Blog: Melissa Quinn, Manager of Digital Partnerships, Run for Water
Water for Waraba, Part 4: Purchasing the Needed Materials – Milestone 2 complete!
Completing Milestone 1 was a huge step and really sets a foundation for the entire project journey to be as successful as possible in the years, and lifetimes, to come. With strong Waraba community committees, a hired water engineer, local government officials, development workers, and Run for Water, we have an amazing group of individuals who are excited about working collectively for the greater benefit of Waraba!
Moving ahead, the teams work together to source and purchase all the materials needed for the entire project. In Waraba, this was no easy feat to overcome. With market instability and price inflation being a common concern, it’s important to be mindful of when the purchases occur. In addition, the project tries to source all the materials from locals within the community, which has the capacity to provide a significant boost to income earned by community members. Having previous experience, we’ve seen that in some communities this can create unhealthy competition among community members. In order to proactively avoid these challenges, a bidding system was developed for the purchase of materials in Waraba.
A call for materials was distributed across Waraba and to nearby communities who are willing to transport the materials to Waraba. Local staff reviewed the submitted applications and hired the most suitable suppliers. This is a great opportunity to improve the income of local households within the community by helping them engage in income generating activities; even more, we’ve been able to engage additional local community members in the project by getting them to provide the materials and see how their work can support the larger community.
With the experience gained in previous projects, the Waraba purchasing process went very smooth! We now have the 4km of steel piping purchased, along with the concrete, rocks, taps, and other materials needed to get the construction underway!
Going into Milestone 3, the construction of the project, the community of Waraba has committed to match 10% of the total project cost with labour contribution. This works out to over 500 local people working during this next construction phase, plus creating paid positions for 20 unskilled and 5 skilled individuals throughout the project period. As the community sees the materials coming in, it is exciting to watch everyone come together to put together the pieces of the project!
We’re excited to keep you updated on the project’s progress so please stay tuned for our upcoming blog posts and GiveTrack updates.
Contact: Melissa Quinn at [email protected]