The community of Darou Diadji now has easy access to clean, abundant water!
A large crowd of residents gathered in Darou Diadji earlier this week to watch the installation of the solar-powered pumping system at the garden site’s newly rehabilitated well. As the pump started up and brought water 200 feet to the surface from a well that had been unused for some 20 years, community members could not believe their eyes! Residents could not imagine that it was possible to pump water from that depth using power generated directly by highly efficient solar panels, without the need for bulky, expensive, and short-lived batteries.
CREATE! field technicians installed the solar-powered pump with the assistance of several young men who live in Darou Diadji.
With the pumping system in place, cooperative members are able to gather water from basins located throughout the garden site. Gardening activities can now begin! Cooperative members in Darou Diadji hope to soon share the success of the cooperative in CREATE!’s partner community of Walo. Since gaining access to solar-pumped water several weeks ago, the Walo garden cooperative has been cultivating tomatoes, eggplant, turnips, okra, and watermelon. Soon, the Darou Diadji garden site will also bear fruit (and vegetables)!
The solar-powered pump is now pumping water at a rate of 40 liters per minute – even in cloudy weather!