Published in May 2026

Muunguini self-help group (SHG) in southeast Kenya came together to proactively tackle water insecurity in their community with a sand dam. Alex and Musangi share their experiences; find out how the project has helped to transform all aspects of their lives, including improving food security and biodiversity in their area.

Musangi Mwangangi is a 48-year-old father of three and makes a living as a farmer. Alex Nzyoka (pictured above) is a 64-year-old farmer, father of five and carer of one grandchild. Both men were seeking ways of addressing the water situation in their community, namely the lack of safe water. Alex says this is what encouraged the inception of the Muunguini SHG:

“I am a founding member who imagined our community getting water security. We wanted to address water shortage in our area as a community, and we began exploring ways we could stop the water running out so fast after rains.”

This led to a collaboration between the self-help group, our partner in southeast Kenya, Africa Sand Dam Foundation (ASDF). Musangi says, prior to the sand dam project, retrieving water was a time-consuming task:

“Water was scarce, and we had to walk for hours to fetch it from the River Miu which is roughly 5 kilometres away.”

Musangi says that this walk was even more difficult for the women in the community, who feared being attacked on the journey. The long walk was also characterised by rough dusty terrain. For Alex and Musangi, the imbalance of time dedicated to fetching water, over the time dedicated to their farms, provided the two with poor farming outcomes. Alex explains:

“I couldn’t dedicate enough hours on my farm. We were always exhausted, and it left us little time for anything else—no time to work or even rest properly. It was like our entire lives revolved around water, but we could never fully catch up with all the other things we wanted or needed to do. My farm was not productive.”

Not only was the journey to water long, but Musangi suggests that even when there was water collected after rainfall, the amount of it was not sufficient to really develop his crops. He says that:

“Lack of enough water made life difficult. I couldn’t grow enough crops to provide food for my family. The unreliable rains make it hard for anyone in this community to have a productive farm.”

The collaboration between Muunguini SHG and ASDF led to the construction of a sand dam and knowledge sharing between the SHG and ASDF, covering Water and Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) in the home and better, climate-smart agricultural practices. Since these developments, both Musangi and Alex note that their community is thriving in various ways. Alex says:

“The trainings are boosting our produce and relationship with one another in the community. We have established our own vegetable plot in which we planted onions and have sold them to make income. As a group we have managed to plant trees from our tree nursery which has thrived because of the water that is now available.”

Alex Nzyoka, member of the Muunguni self-help group in southeast Kenya.

Musangi has also been able to diversify his crops and make a profit from the sale of surplus produce. Musangi was glad to share his achievements:

“I have been able to grow kale, onion and tomatoes. I began selling them a month ago and I am currently at a profit of 5,000 Kenyan Shillings (around £30).”

Musangi Mwangangi, member of the Muunguini self-help group in southeast Kenya.

The sand dam has also helped to raise groundwater levels in the area, improving soil fertility, biodiversity and regreening the surrounding land. Alex notices these changes:

“We are seeing new animals such as birds singing happily and getting settled here as well.”

To conclude the conversation, Alex shares his sense of pride following the sand dam project:

“It’s not just about the water we’ve secured; it’s about the unity and hard work that made it possible. Seeing the difference it has made in our lives reminds me that when we come together, there’s no challenge too big for us to overcome.”

---

Please donate what you can and help to empower vulnerable women and girls in drylands to transform their own lives with sand dams and clean water