Ultra-rapid well construction: sustainability of a semi-household level, post-emergency intervention

After cyclone Gafilo hit Madagascar in March 2004, an emergency relief project was implemented by an international NGO in the flood-hit region around the town of Maroantsetra. With wind speeds of over 300 kilometres per hour, whole villages had been destroyed, forests uprooted, bridges swept away and crops damaged. A deluge of rainfall caused massive flooding and most water sources became heavily contaminated with faecal matter. Immediately, several (household level) emergency actions were undertaken. To mitigate against future contamination of open water sources, a permanent solution was pioneered through the very rapid construction of more than 200 new wells equipped with hand pumps, making use of an innovative well jetting technique. Thanks to its potential to rapidly reach large numbers of people in an affordable manner, jetting is now being integrated in ongoing development project.