The Kajoji Village is located in between hills in the Mityana district. The warm tropical climate in the area has attracted over 273 households settled with hopes of farming. Most of the residents mainly grow maize and coffee but through low economic standards of living. The pursuit of a better life for residents of Kajoji village faces a major problem –the lack of clean safe water. People draw water from an open surface water dam, where the risk of exposure to waterborne diseases is high.This is evident at Kajoji Health Center III due to the high cases of typhoid and bilharzia (a disease caused by infection with freshwater parasitic worms) reported daily.
Women often walk over 5 kilometers with babies on their backs and young children by their side to fetch water before sunrise, especially in the dry season. The dam is shared by both animals and people from Kajoji and neighboring villages of Namigavu, Namataba, and Nsangabwami. The long treks and hardships in collecting water, leave women and girls with little time to complete household chores, attend school, work, or even to take rest for themselves. "I wake up early every morning, around 4 a.m. to go fetch water from the dam," explains Helena, a 26 -year-old mother of three, who has lived in the Kajoji village all her life. All too familiar with the challenges of finding water, she says, "As a woman, I have a load traditionally of the sole responsibility to fetch water for my family. With such, I have no time to finish up household chores. My gardening activities are also compromised as I spend most of the time fetching water." Helena grows beans and tomatoes for sale in her backyard garden.
For school children, water-borne illnesses mean missing school, hence accelerating the levels of illiteracy in the community. St. Paul Kajoji Primary School is the only education center in the village. Without enough water available to make bricks, residents can not construct proper latrines to promote hygiene and sanitation. They pray and ask God that the water situation changes for them someday at the St.Paul Catholic church-Kajojiis the main place of worship and prayer in the community. Without access to safe water, the health, education, and potential development for progress in the Kajoji village still suffer today.
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