Changes

A rope pump model called the Elephant pump Pump was introduced by the organisation Pump aid Aid in 1990. The main difference with the traditional rope pump is the solid round structure around the wheel, to protect the well and to avoid splashing. Now some 3,000 pumps serve 950,000 people and some 95% of the pumps are working. Many more pumps are planned to be installed before 2015 and if this can be realized, this will reach 3 million more people.

The first experiences with rope pumps in Ghana were discouraging. In a World Bank funded project, 80% did not function after one year because of lack of user involvement and production errors. After improvements some 1600 1.600 pumps were installed, but it was not accepted as an alternative for a standard community handpump.