Protecting the environment to secure groundwater
(GEF IW:LEARN World Water Day 2022 Special Bulletin) Kakukuru-Rwenanura Town Council is found in Ntungamo District and lies within the Kagera basin in Uganda. Over the last six, years, 12 shallow wells and 16 bore holes have dried up, according to Kahinda Misach, the former chairperson of the Rwikiniro sub-county who is now the Kakukuru-Rwenanura town council mayor. Almost all shallow wells in this area are hand dug in and are usually hit hard by the mid-year dry season. Unlike in the past decades, well diggers now have to spend more days and energy digging deeper into the ground to find water. Sometimes they do not find it. And occasionally, even fresh wells dry up within months of excavation. "We tried digging boreholes and shallow wells when I was the chairperson Rwikiniro sub-county, but the water table is very far," says Kahinda Misach. Amidst this water security challenge, Kahinda believes the solution lies deep within the ground; the deep groundwater.
