The Acirfa/ Zambikes' theme of sustainable development is being carried out in an important way this month.
The team on the land has been practicing solutions to two common issues they face in their village: sanitation and proper roof design.
Houses, in the rural areas, usually last less than 2 years. The Zambikes workers and their friends are gaining new skills and knowledge to combat this reality. They are receiving practical training specifically for roof construction and latrine design. Their new skills have materialized in the quality of the homes in the nearby villages. The improvements in those homes today, compared to a year ago, are remarkable.
Two reasons behind the prevalent poor building practices are a lack of knowledge and the high cost of building materials. The Zambikes construction team has been using bamboo to build the roof of the new Zambikes Caretaker's House.
Timber is generally the material used for trusses in Zambia, but bamboo is cheaper, more accessible and more sustainable. It grows at an amazing rate and can be found growing wild within Kapampa. The construction team has taken their newfound knowledge of bamboo and roof design to construct roofs that will add many years to the lives of their homes.
Recently I visited Kampampa and used a latrine at the home of a Zambikes construction team member. I realized the way the team members constructed their personal latrines was not quite right. I also recalled that ground water contamination is a leading cause to all sorts of disease and death in the rural areas of Zambia.
As a vital part of each home, I began to consider how to better construct a latrine. I decided on the "arbor loo" latrine, which is shallow, movable, and safer for the environment. The Zambikes construction team is learning three important concepts this month in the construction of this latrine. Seeds of Hope International has served a vital role in the teaching process.
As the team has learned, the first important concept is latrine depth; it is important to avoid entering the water table, particularly where hand-dug wells are commonplace. The second concept is composting, for if the right combination of nitrogen and carbon are mixed, rich soil is formed. The "arbor-loo" achieves this by calling for an individual to mix a handful of carbon rich wood ash and nitrogen rich leaves into the latrine after every use.
The third concept is to utilize bamboo for the structure so that it can be moved to a new hole when necessary. The life of the bamboo latrine structure far exceeds the life of the usual latrine structures in the area. Once the latrine is 2/3 full, the pit is back filled and a tree is planted.
To personally witness the on-site teaching spread throughout the Zambikes team and into their homes and families has been the most rewarding part of this quarter for me. Your prayers, as supporters, are being answered daily. The spiritual growth of the team has been more apparent over the last few months than during the rest of the year.
The team is actively looking for ways to bless each other and bless the community. Issues like national elections and the death of the president are trials that often lead to death and destruction on this continent.
To see the Zambikes teams commit to prayer and peace during this time, despite their different political beliefs and tribal backgrounds, is an amazing answer to prayer. Thank you for the prayers and support. I ask that you pray specifically for the Zambikes construction workers and mechanics, that their lives will continue to be transformed.
