Construction Started

Most of the construction work is being completed by the stone mason for Gisenyi. He has started working on four latrines and has already poured footings for dividing walls in two of the latrines. Because the work is going smoothly and the Bob's don't have much to do, they are planning to return to USA two days earlier than planned (leave Rwanda next Thursday rather than Saturday)

Modification of Slab Design for Latrines

The aggregate and sand for the slabs (latrine floors) arrived but did not meet our expected specifications. The aggregate contained a wider range of sizes than expected, and the sand contained gravel and silt - both of these factors lead to concerns about the ability of concrete made from these materials lasting for the lifetime of the latrine.

The current proposal for improving the structure is to pour a single slab (instead of six) and to support the slab with steel beams and metal roofing material. The steel beams will be two pieces of angle iron welded together (to form a T profile) and four beams will span across the pits on 16" centers. Roofing material will be placed perpendicular to the beams in order to support the concrete. The concrete will be reinforced with rebar as in the original design.

There are several advantages and disadvantages to this new design. It will be implemented on the first latrine to determine how well construction proceeds and then a decision will be made whether to continue with the new design or a modification of the old design.

The foreman and laborers are working on putting in concrete footings in the first latrine today and will start building the support walls soon after that. Pouring of the slab should occur early next week.

Accomplishments from first 3 days in Rwanda

BobH and BobDF have been busy in Rugerero and have reported the following accomplishments:

1. Hiring a foreman to oversee the latrine construction - the foreman was recommended by Jean Bosco and is a skilled stone mason (the central wall dividing the pit will be constructed from stone)


2. Purchased supplies for the first four latrines


3. Visited a shop that can construct the forms for pouring the concrete slabs - the shop can make one form per day - they will make one form and test it this week, then proceed with making six forms total


4. Met with community to discuss the plans for latrine construction - the community agreed to provide labor for moving materials and cleaning out the bottom of the pits

We are excited about these achievements in the first few days on the ground. Jean Bosco (from Red Cross) is our primary contact and host in Rwanda - he has been very helpful (this picture shows BobH, BobDF and Jean Bosco on the last trip to Rwanda).

Transportation is being provided using the Red Cross van supplied by Jean Bosco - the van runs on Rwanda time, so the Bob's have had to be patient with getting a later start in the mornings than hoped. They have experimented with public transit, but the van still seems like the best option because hiring our own car and driver is very expensive.

Today, the foreman did not show up in Rugerero as expected but has promised to be there on time tomorrow to start working on preparing a pit and installing the dividing wall.

Generally, the team is a little frustrated that the project is not proceeding as quickly as they would like and the community is not willing to put in as much labor as hoped. We are learning to understand the culture of the community and how best to work with them.

First Part of Travel Team Arrives in Rwanda

BobH and BobDF made it to Rwanda! They drove to DC, spent the night in a hotel, and then spent almost a whole day traveling to Rwanda (via Rome, Addis Abba Ethiopia and finally Kigali Rwanda). In Kigali, they met up with a driver who took them to Gisenyi - about a 4 hour drive.

The Bobs are staying in Mama Chalula's guest house in Gisenyi. They have identified a foreman who will begin construction on the latrines on Tuesday. They have met with some the community and some local officals about the project so far.

Some other good news! The money that EWB-USA wired from our account arrived in Rwanda - so the travel team will have access to the funds they need to execute the initial stages of the project!

Latrine Repair Project in Rugerero Rwanda

Below is a satellite image showing the homes in Rugerero Rwanda. The homes are colored based on whether their latrines are fully functional, damaged, or non-functional.

Below is a legend for the colors in the map with pictures of typical latrine pits.

Between August 22 and September 20, 2008, the EWB Mid Atlantic Professionals will be in Rugerero to implement a latrine upgrading project. During the trip, EWB-MAP plans to upgrade at least five of the worst latrines based on the design shown below. Latrine upgrades will continue with local supplies and labor over the next year.

Test EWB MAP Rwanda Blog

This is an initial test of a blog for posting details of the EWB-MAP trip to Rugerero, Rwanda in August-September 2008.