Introduction

Soppo-Likoko is a village situated in the Sub Division of Buea. The village is located approximately 3,00 km from Great Soppo, 4,2 km to Small Soppo and 8 km to the University of Buea. Great- and Small Soppo including many other villages form the entirety of Buea, which has a population of about 180.000 people. The Town of Buea is a historic town located at the foot and eastern slopes of Mount Cameroon, the highest mountain in West and Central Africa. It was the capital of German Kamerun during German colonial rule, the capital of Southern Cameroon under British colonial rule, the capital of the Federated State of West Cameroon, and now regional capital of the South West Region of Cameroon.

Background Statement of the Problem

Clean Water Supply in Soppo-Likoko has been a major problem for decades that is manifested by a dangerous river called Wange with its origin from the foot of Mount Cameroon. During the rainy and dry seasons, Wange unpredictably overflows its banks in a massive scale due to heavy rains from the mountain. As a consequence the villagers earn up drinking rainwater that stirs up cholera and many other illnesses. In several occasions some of the villagers, particularly children and women, have been rescued from drowning as they attempted fetching water across the river. 100% of the villagers fetch their drinking water from a spring that lies across the main river Wange. (See photographs enclosed).

Sources of Livelihood:

Families in the village are involved in small-scale agriculture by producing various crops with the hope of selling some when there is excess of production in local markets. These agricultural activities are supported by some of the village children, as they tend to give a helping hand to their parents during the holiday season. The people of Soppo-Likoko village face other challenges ranging from lack of electricity supply, lack of good roads for the transportation of farm products to the surrounding local markets, transportation of sick people to hospitals, etc.

Profile of Soppo-Likoko Village:

Project Aim:

The Project idea is to construct a water tank connected with pipes that will convey the spring water from Wange river to a safe location in Soppo-Likoko village, where villagers can savely collect clean water to use for their basic needs as drinking, cooking, etc . The distance from Wange river to the location in the village where the water tank will be constructed is approximately 2.5km.

Project Implementation & Management Strategy:

There is a Community Network in Soppo-Likoko that will ensure full participation of community at different stages of the project and will also seek technical advice from experts. The project will be implemented over a period of 4 months. However, the day-to-day management of the project will be the responsibility of the Soppo-Likoko Village Community.

Project Implementation & Management Strategy:

There is a Community Network in Soppo-Likoko that will ensure full participation of community at different stages of the project and will also seek technical advice from experts. The project will be implemented over a period of 4 months. However, the day-to-day management of the project will be the responsibility of the Soppo-Likoko Village Community.

Community Participation:

• Contribution of man-power by the Community
• Clearing the project site
• Educating the community members on safe use of the water tank
• Community network that will ensure the sustainability of the project and also keep the site clean.

The benefits of the project lie not only in providing clean water to the villagers but also in the following:

• Improving the villagers’ health standards through provision of clean water
• Providing water on a safe platform for the villagers
• The project will also serve as a prototype to be replicated in other neighboring villages and districts that have     similar challenges.

Sustainability:

The sustainability of the Soppo-Likoko Water Project is based on the following:

• Contribution from the community members. The Village Council will mobilize the community to form a     committee that will oversee the overall running of the project. This committee will also be responsible for     collecting regular fees from its members to be used in maintaining the water tank. The water project will not     serve as a means to generate funds for the villagers’ other activities. The fees that will be collected will be     used solely for maintenance purposes.

Evaluation:

African Bridge Builders e. V. (ABB) together with the Soppo-Likoko Village Council will be fully involved throughout the entire project to make sure that the objectives of the project are met.


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