In a move aimed at increasing access to safe drinking water in communities living around its areas of operation, Hima Cement Limited has donated boreholes to Tororo town’s Western Division.
The boreholes were handed over to the benefiting communities with support from Mzee Ahmed Jamal, the LC3 chairperson of Tororo Western Division and his team.
One of the boreholes is located at Aturukuku Primary School that has a population of 556 pupils while the other one is located at Zone B, Tororo town. The boreholes will also serve the neighboring communities.
Speaking at the handover ceremony, Patrick Waswa, the Logistics Director at Hima Cement said that Hima has invested in uplifting communities and will continue to invest in areas that bring about a positive change to the livelihoods of the people living around its areas of operation.
“As Hima Cement, everything that we do is centered on keeping our people safe. We know that access to clean and safe water is one of the catalysts for development in any community. These boreholes are therefore a starting point towards keeping our communities safe,” he explained.
Domaiza Abdul, the Headteacher at Aturukuku Primary School expressed joy on officially receiving one of the boreholes. “I am happy that we finally have a source of clean water not only for the pupils but also the community at large. This will help us curb the spread of waterborne diseases.”
Ahmed Jamal lauded Hima Cement Limited for supplementing government efforts towards improving Health and Sanitation.
“Thank you for continuing this journey with us as a community and for complementing our efforts as Local Government in providing safe drinking water to our communities.”
Despite the recent increase in the Human Development Index (HDI) in Uganda to nearly 0.5, it is lagging behind other countries, and its’ global HDI ranking fell from 140th in 2000 to 164th in 2013 (out of 187 countries).
The Uganda Vision 2040 however, promises universal access to water and sanitation – all Ugandans will have access to safe water and a modern toilet facility. Some of the steps to achieve this vision involve government partnerships with the private sector to promote access to safe drinking water.
Drawing from the LafargeHolcim principle of sustainable social investment, Hima Cement’s community development efforts focus on key areas of health and safety, education, infrastructure and environment.