Drinkable Air Technologies in Kenya: cleaner and safer water for students.

In February, 2019, Drinkable Air Technologies (DAT) was informed by its local Kenyan distributor, Africa Trade Corporatsion (ATC) that ATC was accepted as a demonstration for the UN Environment Conference in Nairobi from March 11-15, 2019. In consultation with DAT, ATC indicated they intended to find a CSR target where they could place a demonstration to obtain some objective and subjective data surrounding such a placement for sharing at the conference. David N. Wandabi - Programs Officer, Eco-schools Programme, Kenya Organization for Environmental Education then introduced ATC to St. Mary’s Primary School in Machakos County.

St. Mary’s has 400 students and staff and has a real need for potable water. ATC delivered a C8 unit to the site. The unit was connected to power alone overnight to bring produce water. The unit produces about 400 L of water a day in appropriate climate conditions like Machakos which would be more than adequate for a school of this size.

“Apart from the information gathered by the team on the impact of the unit to the school, we have also had further conversation with the school head teacher on the same. She was full of praise of the unit.” says Mr. Wanabi. “The school normally solely depended on rain water to provide water for drinking. This however has been an unsustainable technology as the school is an arid area which gets very little rain in a year. Most of the time pupils are asked to carry water from home for drinking which is cumbersome and the cleanliness of the water safety is not guaranteed. The head teacher points out that since the unit was installed; children have been happy as they have not been required to carry water from home. The water has been reliable, cold and clean. The water has also been used by teachers. The school board of management and parents have also been full of praise for the unit as they no longer had to worry on helping their children get water for drinking to carry to school.”

The Ministry of Education has also noted that the technology can be of great help especially to other schools in arid and semi-arid areas like Machakos County.

“It is certainly an exciting time for us as the Eco-schools National Operators in Kenya, to be pioneering such an innovative technology as Drinkable Air” says Dr. Dorcas Beryl Otieno, Executive Director of Kenya Organisation for Environmental Education (KOEE). “From the feedback we have had so far from St Mary's School, it has been life-changing for the students and the school as a whole.”