Naomi Sanskey Kasagila (38) lives at Kaungwa, Lichwe village in the Sumbawaga District, Rukwa region Tanzania. She is an entrepreneur who is married and has three children. Her household consists of five people. She also has one tenant whose household consists of four people.

Though Naomi has a liquor store, she was unable to meet the lump sum costs for accessing water and constructing a good toilet. Naomi and her family faced a number of challenges.  Naomi’s family did not have access to water except for a seasonal borehole well water from her neighbor who was one kilometer away from her house. The water Naomi collected from her neighbor would mainly serve for domestic needs only. There were times the neighbor locked and opened the borehole as she pleased. This implied that Naomi and her family were supposed to follow the neighbor’s schedule and left them with no access to water when the borehole was locked.

It was great news when Naomi, through her mother, heard about the Rukwa Farmers’ Cooperative and their new credit line known as Water Supply and Sanitation (WSS) Loans. She was also assured about the simplification of processing the so-called WSS loan.

“After speaking with a borehole and toilet expert, I got a Bill of Quantity (BOQ) for a borehole and toilet construction. I applied for a TZS 1,000,000 water supply and sanitation loan from Rukwa Farmers’ Cooperative. I was very happy with the service I received because it was as advertised.  The loan was processed, approved and disbursed on time. Also, the drilling of a borehole and renovation of 3 toilets was completed within two weeks. I basically repay a monthly installment of TZS 100,000.” a proud Naomi said.

Naomi continues to say, “The entire family is very happy with the constant water supply and better toilets which are easier to clean and maintain. After renovating the tenants’ toilets, the value of my property has increased.  It has become more attractive for tenants with a better rent.”