May 4: Update from Tanzania

Letter sent Monday, May 4, 2009 from Roger Whitfield.

Dear Friends and supporters,

It is Saturday morning here with a beautiful sky and 80 degree low humidity weather.  I am sitting under a tree in the hotel courtyard thinking of what I can tell you.  So much has happened that it is almost becoming a blur.  You’ll see that I am using Suzanne’s distribution list, so those of you who don’t know me, please bear with this expediency.  I think most of you know that I am here to work on improving the Mwitikra water supply and thus have had a different agenda from Suzanne and often we have met only at the end of the day.

The first thing is to say how fortunate and blessed I am to have Rev. Brian Polkinghorne working with me.  Bishop Mdimi Mhogolo, the DCT bishop, assigned him to our project in January and he did much groundwork before I arrived here.  What he has contributed has been very profound and helpful.  Brian is a missionary from Australia and has been in Tanzania with his wife for 35 years.  He is 71 years old and looks quite monastic; tall, spare, gray, an Amish beard and eyes that pierce you.  He is fluent in Swahili and knows and loves the people.  After ordination in Australia he studied agricultural engineering and has been applying that knowledge here as a missionary for the past 35 years.  He has learned that there is a lot more to mission than simply handing out help; that building relationships and trust is important, but perhaps more importantly, the recipients have to participate in the giving; to want what is offered and be willing and able to take care of it.  He has no patience with showcase technology; that it works and can be maintained by the recipients is what counts for him.  From his initial contacts with the village, he determined that the Village Water Committee was dysfunctional.  He posed to the Committee and Village Council that they must change and, with my and Father Erasto’s endorsement, made change a condition for our help.  He set specific targets with a timeline of significant administrative progress before my arrival.  I am happy to report that this paid off.  The day before I arrived, Father Erasto met with the Village Council and insisted that four trusted and competent members of his parish be added to the Village Water Committee (VWC); after which they met and elected Erasto as the chairman.  A meeting of the VWC with Brian and me was scheduled for this past Tuesday.  On the day before (Monday), Brian and I met with an official of the District Water Council, a District government body, and announced our presence and intent, received their blessing and an offer of some limited support.

Tuesday’s meeting in Mwitikira went well. (Note: this was after Suzanne and Aimee had spent two nights in the village).  The whole VWC was present along with the Village Council, their president and some district officials.  They told us of the changes and the assignments already made to VWC members.  They also told us of the difficulties with present system and where they would like help.  I know the road to hell is paved with good intentions, but with Erasto in charge, I truly believe they can chart another course.  His leadership on the church construction is exemplary.  Because of their changes we proposed to them that we would:

Replace their diesel engine with a new one
Replace their borehole pump with a new one, both vintage 2002
Fund training of two villagers as basic plumbers
Request periodic progress reports
Delay extension of the distribution network for 6 months pending demonstration of good system and administrative performance.

They gratefully accepted our proposal.

Following the meeting, the VWC took me on a tour of the water system (I confess, my first) although both Suzanne and Brian had seen it and reported their conclusions to me.  It is very sad.  The government put it in in 1968 and very thoughtfully designed and installed, but now it is a picture of neglect.  It is redeemable but it will take work, good management and our resource help.

Just a little about the system.  It is a “serious” water system, not one of these “few kids pulling on a merry-go-round” things.  It supplies 4-6000 villagers plus waters animals from the environs, thus when it in trouble, so are a lot of people.  The water source is a 250 ft deep borehole (well) in a low-lying valley.  Because of the depth, the water is clean and because of the location it is plentiful.  The borehole was drilled in 2000 and has a tested capacity of twice current usage.  The problems are with the extraction and delivery segments.  A 20 HP diesel engine drives the pump – more than 3 times the power of currently available solar pumps.  From the engine, belts and pulleys drive a shaft that goes all the way to the bottom of the well, where the pump is.  It is a “progressive cavity” pump, the technology of choice in this region.  There is no electricity supply, so the typical US technology of a submersible pump is not an option without installing an expensive diesel generator.  The pumping rate is 4000 gallons per hour for 8-12 hours per day.  From the pump, the water goes to a 25,000-gallon water tank located on a rise adjacent to the primary school.  Gravity then feeds the water to the 6 distribution points, all at a lower elevation.  In addition to the people distribution points, there is a large – 60 ft long, two sides – large animal watering trough, a shorter trough for small animals – sheep, goats – and large cattle dipping tank with runways.

The diesel engine is unreliable in spite of having been recently overhauled.  The local water council shop overhauled it and there is suspicion that they are not quite upright and may have installed some cheap parts.  We propose a new engine.  The pump was recently removed and showed signs of wear, but there was no money to replace it.  We propose a new one.  The troughs and dipping tank are in good shape but badly overgrown.  We propose to let the VWC restore them.  Only four of the distribution points are functional and of the two faucets at each point, only one works and they all have to be closed with either a heavy rock or rubber band.  We propose to let the VWC take care of them but with the help of our training.  Currently, no one in the village knows how to fix or change a faucet.  We propose to train two VWC selected people in basic plumbing techniques and if successful extend that to more complex procedures like repairing and installing lines.

Since the Tuesday meeting I have been spending much of my time figuring out what the equipment is – the village records are “unavailable” and the local water council has not been too cooperative (folks think there is corruption there), but I think I have it figured out.  I have also been getting quotes from local vendors, Dar es Salaam vendors and even from original manufacturers – UK in the case of the engine and Australia in the case of the pump – and thank God for cell phones and the internet.  The process has had a lot of iterations because of the uncertainty of what is already there – engine OK because it is above ground; the pump ??? because it is 250 feet down – but I think I have it.  The latest issue is whether we have to pay the 20% VAT.  The short answer is no because we are donating religious body, but the downside is that we have to apply for a certificate of exemption and this may take a month or more.  Whether we can pay the tax and later get a refund has not been answered.  The reason this is an issue is below.

A complication is that the existing pump assembly was manufactured by CEMO, a South African company.  They are no longer held in high regard and their place has been taken by a company called MONO.  To replace the WHOLE pump will be very expensive.  Our budget can handle the main pumping element and few other pieces.  Thus the issue of compatibility is there.  MONO says no sweat, but the Diocese is a little more circumspect and thinks that I need to supervise the installation.  I have found some expertise so am not too worried, however I may have to stay here a little longer to pull it off and thus my concern about immediate purchasing and VAT

Please keep me in your prayers.  Although it may not be apparent from what I have written, God’s helping hand has been here.  Perhaps the biggest challenge I am facing is having to preach at the following Sunday’s service in Mwitikira.  Suzanne is preaching this Sunday, in Swahili, no less!!  Mine will be a lot more modest, delivered in nervous Virginian.  Theme suggestions are welcome.

On Monday we visit the Bishop for cocktails and dinner.  We understand his house is spectacular and feel privileged to have been invited.

My regards and thanks for this opportunity,

Roger