For years, 600 pupils of St. Theresa Primary School in Murang’a County moved through each day carrying an unspoken struggle. Water was not something taken for granted; it was something chased. Donkeys walked long distances to fetch it from distant sources, returning with containers filled with cloudy water that the school had no choice but to accept. It looked like a solution, but in truth it was a fragile hope-one that masked the deeper challenge of inadequate and unsafe water access. Since this approach proved inadequate, pupils were at times asked to bring water from home, further underscoring the severity of the shortage and the strain it placed on families.

Time and energy that should have supported learning were instead spent trying to secure water for drinking, cooking, and basic cleanliness. The school lived in this cycle for years, adjusting to it as though there was no alternative.
Yet within this difficult reality, the headteacher refused to accept that this was how things had to remain. The search eventually came to an end when Davis & Shirtliff, under the leadership of the Murang’a Branch Manager, Amos Mbugua, partnered with the Britam Foundation and installed a solar-powered water pump.
Today, that change is felt in every corner of the school. Every drop of clean water now supports a child’s health, every safe source protects the community, and every classroom benefits from an environment where learners can focus, grow, and thrive without interruption.