The tap that brought Muko’s children back to class

It is a cool morning in Muko, a village on the hills of Ruharambuga Sector in Nyamasheke District. Nyirandorimana Frodinatha stands at the new tap stand in green rubber boots. Two streams of clean water pour into two yellow jerrycans. She is smiling.

For people in Muko, this ordinary moment is new. Not long ago, there was no water here at all.

01When the water stopped

Nyamasheke District lies in western Rwanda, above Lake Kivu. Its steep hills are prone to flash floods and landslides. In recent years, heavy rains and landslides destroyed the water supply systems that served villages like Muko, and water services stopped completely (UNICEF Rwanda, 2024).

Life changed overnight. Families queued and argued at the few water sources that still worked. Others walked long distances to find water. Children often went with their parents, so they arrived late for school, or did not go at all.

“In our village, we had no water. For 12 years, I did not have easy access to water,” says Alphonsine Mwamini, a mother in Muko. “During summer, only men would fetch water, and it was also challenging because the stream they retrieved water from would often run dry, and we didn’t have anywhere to buy water.”

02A country closing the gap

Rwanda has made strong progress on water. By the 2022 census, 82 per cent of people had access to water supply: 96 per cent in towns, but 77 per cent in rural areas (Ministry of Infrastructure, 2023). By 2023/24, 87 per cent of rural households used an improved source of drinking water (NISR, EICV7).

• 12 yearswithout easy access to water, in Alphonsine Mwamini’s words
• 1 hourthe journey for water that Faris Uwitonze says is coming to an end
• 77%of people in rural Rwanda had access to water supply in 2022, against 96% in towns
• 87%of rural households used an improved drinking water source in 2023/24

But in districts like Nyamasheke, one landslide can undo years of progress for a whole village. When the pipes break, families go back to the stream.

03The water comes back

Above the village, among the banana plants, stands the answer: a round stone reservoir with a blue rim and blue pipes running down its side.

With funding from the Government of Japan, UNICEF supported the restoration of damaged water supply systems in Nyamasheke and the construction of new ones in villages across the district (UNICEF Rwanda, 2024). The water now reaches tap stands close to people’s homes, and it is free.

“Earlier, water scarcity was a burden to us,” says Zachée Bikorimana, a young man from Muko. “This project of providing water to our district and building many water supplies for each village has saved us. Our children will no longer miss school or be late anymore. We are going to access clean water.”

04Building it together

The project also created work. Some residents were hired to help restore and build the water systems (UNICEF Rwanda, 2024). After twelve years without easy water, Alphonsine was one of them.

“I got a job to assist with cleaning up and was paid, contributing to my personal development; I managed to solve different issues around my home,” she says.

05An hour given back

For Faris Uwitonze, a father in Muko, fetching water used to mean a journey of about an hour. Now the water supply is near his home.

“Having a water supply has been instrumental in ensuring water is easily accessible to me,” he says.

06Clean, on time, in class

Today, women, men and children in Muko no longer spend precious hours struggling for water. Mothers no longer have to choose between fetching water and sending their children to school (UNICEF Rwanda, 2024).

For Alphonsine, the change is visible every morning, when her children leave for school.

As the rehabilitation work continues, communities across Nyamasheke can look forward to continued access to free, clean water close to home (UNICEF Rwanda, 2024).

Back at the tap stand, Frodinatha lifts a full jerrycan and places the next one under the stream.