She Fixed 16 Wells Pregnant. Then Kept Going.
July 30, 2026
Suzanna Akuol Nyeng is the first female pump mechanic in Mangok. Her community chose her. In six months she repaired 16 wells, all while pregnant. The only thing that can stop her is a missing part.
She Fixed 16 Wells Pregnant. Then, Kept Going.
Suzanna Akuol Nyeng sold sorghum and groundnuts in Mangar Angui market. She'd worked for international NGOs, Samaritan's Purse, Tearfund, the International Rescue Committee, but one by one, those contracts ended. She was back to figuring it out alone.
Then her community did something remarkable. Her chief and her neighbors looked at this woman, five kids, a market stall, obviously sharp, obviously relentless, and said: Train her. Make her a pump mechanic. The first woman in her area to ever be trained.
She learned every part by name. Learned to tear a well apart and rebuild it. Learned how to read a P&L and taught women at every repair site about sanitation and hygiene. She got a bicycle, a toolbox, and startup capital. She went to work.
In the first six months of 2025, Suzanna and her partner repaired 16 wells. She did all of it pregnant. On June 28th, she gave birth to her sixth child, a baby boy. Another mouth to feed and send to school. She never let up.
This is what happens when you hand women the tools. They don't wait. They don't stop. They are ferocious.
The only obstacle between Suzanna and clean water for 2,000 communities? Parts. Quality stainless steel parts manufactured in India, shipped to South Sudan, and placed directly into her hands.
