Ecuador, Sinangoe Village 2009

Name of project: Cofan-Sinangoe water purification system and sanitation project.

Location: Cofan community, Sinangoe village Sucumbios province, North-West Ecuador, South America. GPS -

Project supporter: ITT

Challenge: The lack of drinkable water and a water purification system caused ongoing health problems for the locals that included dysentery, diarrhoea and parasites and resulted in numerous deaths.
The village is on the Aguarico river and this remote location, combined with health ministry’s lack of resources, means there is virtually no medical help. There are twice-yearly visits by doctors and dentists but they don’t leave any medicine behind.
The locals built a dam and a collector tank and the river water travels to the village by pipe. Many of the pipes that bring water into the village were in a poor state, causing a sluggish flow.
Each house drew water from the main pipe from smaller pipes; by the time the water reached the last house the amount of water flowing per minute had dropped by a third.
This led to sediment forming which contributed to the health problems

What we did:  We put in a purification system with five separate types of filtration, installed the necessary air valves and taps, and replaced the main pipe where it was damaged.

Achievements:  We provided the necessary parts for the upkeep of the filters for a year and trained the local community in how to maintain the purification system. We connected the local school to the supply and also gave them books.

Beneficiaries: Twenty Cofan families totalling 150 people, including 20 children in a nursery. The Cofan are a small group of indigenous people, who farm sugar cane, plantain and fruits and hunt pigs, jaguars and other prey.

Finish date: August 2009