Africa Sand Dam Foundation (ASDF) is a registered Kenyan NGO working in Makueni, Machakos, and Kitui counties in the Republic of Kenya. Our mission is to create food, water, and income-secure communities across the arid and semi-arid lands of Africa.
We work hand in hand with community self-help groups to harvest and conserve soil and water — turning seasonal rivers and rainfall into a reliable, year-round resource that transforms lives for generations.
In Kenya's arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs), most rivers are seasonal, flowing only during the rainy seasons and remaining dry during the dry months of the year. Kenya has two rainy seasons — the "long rains" from mid-March to May and the "short rains" from October to December. As a result, communities face chronic water shortages in between, which makes access to safe and reliable water a daily struggle.
Women and children bear the greatest burden, often walking long distances — up to 10 kilometres every day — to collect water for drinking, cooking, and other household needs. This exhausting and time-consuming task reduces the time available for education, farming, and income-generating activities, limiting opportunities for families to improve their livelihoods.
The lack of accessible water extends beyond household hardship. Without reliable water sources, communities remain trapped in a cycle of poverty, making it difficult to build resilient and sustainable livelihoods.
We work with communities through registered self-help groups (SHGs) using a community-led development approach over a five-year period to address locally identified challenges, including water scarcity, food insecurity, income insecurity, and environmental degradation. During the first year, SHG members develop a five-year development plan that guides the implementation of priority projects aimed at driving sustainable development in their communities.
We implement rainwater harvesting and storage projects such as sand dams, school water tanks, rock catchments, and solar-powered water distribution systems, to promote water, food, and financial security, and soil and water conservation within the communities.
Learn moreASDF currently operates in Kenya in five counties; Machakos, Makueni, Kitui, Kajiado and Tharaka Nithi. We have been involved in the provision of technical support to 14 organisations from around the world to learn about the benefits of sand dams and how to implement them, through training courses, provision of technical resources and consultancy services. ASDF has directly supported sand dam pilots through feasibility studies and supervision of sand dam construction in Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, Mozambique, India, Ethiopia, Somalia and Somaliland. This support has enabled the design and implementation of 70+ successful sand dam projects. We are also implementing sand dams in Madagscar in collaboration with UNICEF.
Our projects are built on a partnership model that embraces community contribution. Communities provide locally available materials such as sand, stones, ballast and unskilled labour, while ASDF provides technical expertise, all hardware materials such as cement, nails, timber, metal bars, and facilitates government approval processes. This shared partnership ensures long term sustainability, stewardship, and project ownership by the communities. Once the project implementation is complete, communities are responsible for project operations and maintenance. We also engage the communities in skills and knowledge transfer through trainings, group exchanges and learning visits.
Cornelius Kyalo Matheka is a development practitioner with over 20 years of experience in rural water supply, natural resource management, and community development. He has held field, programme management, and executive leadership roles, gaining practical experience in the planning, implementation, and management of community-based development initiatives.
As a successful smallholder farmer, Cornelius combines practical agricultural experience with technical knowledge of sand dam technology, in-situ rainwater harvesting, climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, WASH, and integrated natural resource management. He has managed donor-funded programmes, supported community capacity building, and contributed to initiatives that improve water security, strengthen rural livelihoods, and enhance the resilience of communities in dryland areas. His professional training in leadership, project management, grant management, and continuous improvement complements his practical experience in delivering sustainable development programmes.
Musila is a community development professional with 23 years of experience in rural water supply, sand dam implementation, and community development across Africa. Before joining ASDF as Development Director, he held a range of field and programme management roles, developing strong leadership and management skills in the planning, implementation, and oversight of community-based development programmes.
A successful smallholder farmer, Musila combines practical agricultural experience with specialist technical expertise in the siting, design, and construction of sand dams. Over the course of his career, he has designed more than 1,000 successful sand dams, contributing to improved water access, sustainable natural resource management, and stronger community resilience in dryland areas. His experience includes leading multidisciplinary teams, mentoring technical staff, and working closely with communities and partners to deliver sustainable water and livelihoods programmes across Africa.
Together we can help millions of rural communities in Africa's drylands transform their own lives. Get in touch to learn how you can support our work.
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