Road-trip season takes on a different meaning in Honduras where miles logged by Cova circuit riders are rapidly on the rise. With your support, we are expanding our reach into new communities. We recently welcomed ten new circuit riders, now on the road making daily rounds to keep the momentum strong.

It takes a passionate team of trained water technicians and a small fleet of motorcycles to ensure safe water reaches rural communities across Central America every day. Our dedicated Circuit Riders are the foundation of Cova’s safe-water model. ¡Vamenos! Let’s ride!  

First Stop: Capacity Building

Sure, it sounds jargony and buzz-wordy, but there’s just no better way to describe the bridging of the knowledge gap too often left in the wake of water system installations. Studies show that more than 50% of unsupported community water system projects fail within five years of construction without post-construction support.

Today, the community’s delegated Water Board gathers in the community hall to learn from our circuit rider about watershed analysis. Upcoming workshops will cover water source protection, water system maintenance, water treatment, and financial management. Cova circuit riders provide resources, skills, and knowledge to build the capacity of communities to be self-sufficient at ensuring sustainable safe drinking water for the long term. With a date in the books for the next workshop, our circuit rider mounts up and moves on.

Next Stop: Chlorinator Installation

A few miles down the road, water board members meet our circuit rider tank-side with tools and muscle and newly acquired know-how to assist in the installation of Cova’s signature simple low-flow chlorinator. Cova’s mission is not only to keep water flowing, but to ensure that the water is safe to drink. Cova’s chlorinator is a low-cost, low-maintenance, locally-sourced solution that attaches to any rural community’s water tank and releases a controlled dosage of chlorine to kill the harmful bacteria that causes illness and disease. The installation process is hands-on and a learning opportunity. It is afternoon before our circuit rider leaves the ongoing water quality monitoring in the capable hands of the community.

Home Stretch: Making House-calls

A few visits to homes on the way back to the Cova office to collect samples for water quality testing rounds out our circuit rider’s day. Field and laboratory water quality testing assesses contamination in community water sources and allows circuit riders to support communities in troubleshooting water system issues and making adjustments to water treatment as required. The bucket of chlorine strapped to the back of the motorcycle is delivered, and our circuit rider circles back to home base. Even when communities have become self-sufficient, Cova continues to provide technical assistance as-needed and ongoing chlorine tablet distribution.

The motorcycle is parked. Data is logged. Our circuit rider rests a little easier with the knowledge that safe water flows. Cova circuit riders support over 2,000 rural communities across our three countries of operation. Tomorrow is a new day. There are more communities to visit. There is another circuit to ride.

For a closer look at a day in the life of a circuit rider and Cova’s safe water successes, you are invited to join us in Honduras for our Impact Trip in November!