Dar Rotary Club installs safe water project at Bugando Oncology Center

MWANZA: THE Rotary Club of Dar es Salaam, in partnership with the Rotary Club of Daniel Island from the US, Water Mission, and Bugando Medical Centre (BMC), has completed a major Safe Water Project for the newly constructed Oncology Center at Bugando Medical Centre in Mwanza.

Abdulqadir Hameed, the President, Rotary Club of Dar es Salaam, said this life-saving initiative was funded through a Rotary Foundation Global Grant and represents a total investment of 90,500 US dollars.

Bugando Medical Centre is a 1,000-bed tertiary referral hospital serving approximately 14 million people in northwestern Tanzania.

With the opening of its new Oncology Centre completed in May 2024, the need for a reliable and safe drinking water supply became critical, particularly for immunocompromised cancer patients.

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The partnership has managed to install a  dedicated safe water supply line for the Oncology Centre

Besides that, the initiative  managed to  construct 50,000-liter holding tanks to ensure consistent bacterial reduction and resilience during water outages as well as the installation of a chlorination system to improve water quality

Through the project, Bugando Hospital has established multiple public access spigots across the hospital’s campus, while it also implemented WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) education for staff, patients, and the wider community

The project directly benefits oncology patients while also providing safe drinking water access to hundreds of daily hospital users, including staff, visitors, caregivers, and members of the Lake Zone community.

To ensure long-term sustainability, Bugando Medical Centre will own and maintain the system while Water Mission provides engineering design, installation oversight, and operator training

According to the management of the hospital, the water system will be regularly tested for bacteria levels and chlorine quality to ensure continued compliance and safety.

The President of Rotary Club of Dar es Salaam said: “Safe water is not a luxury in a hospital — it is a necessity. We are proud that this project protects vulnerable cancer patients and strengthens the entire Bugando community. This is Rotary in action.”

Rotary Club is a global network of 1.4 million leaders and problem-solvers who take action to create lasting change in communities around the world.