news & events
hope amid bleak statistics
Top centre: Millions of people worldwide still rely on water from dirty streams.
Hope amid bleak statistics: how are MRDF partners making a difference on World Water Day?
21 March 2006
Missing the target
Over 1 billion people worldwide do not have access to safe, clean drinking water.
World Water Day on 22 March provides an opportunity to explore how access to clean water can be made a reality for people in some of the world"s poorest communities.
Although in 2000, world leaders agreed, as part of the Millennium Development Goals, to work towards halving the proportion of people worldwide without access to safe drinking water, sub-Saharan Africa is way behind on meeting this target. The outlook for the area on sanitation is even worse.
Hope in Uganda
Yet, despite a bleak picture overall, there are some positive stories of hope. In one area of Uganda, simple, low-cost solutions are making a big difference to people's health and well-being.
In Wakiso District, a new well in a village means everyone can benefit from clean, safe water. Therefore, everyone wants to get involved in making it happen, whether its helping with construction, keeping the water point clean and well maintained or training friends and neighbours in good hygiene and sanitation.
So far, MRDF partner, Voluntary Action for Development (VAD), has helped 76 villages to build 93 wells, which now provide clean water to nearly 15,000 people.
Lack of clean water leads to death or sickness caused by preventable water-related diseases like cholera, typhoid and diarrhoea.
"Before this programme was established in our area in 2001 the situation was really pathetic," explained Samake Omada from Bukerekere village Kikandwa Parish. "People got their water from ponds and streams. The water was full of health hazards such as algae, weeds and small aquatic animals and the general hygiene and sanitation conditions were life threatening."
Waste not, want not
Not only is there now a well in Bukerekere, built and managed by Samake and other villagers, but VAD has also come up with a range of ingenious ideas to help people stay clean and healthy - without wasting precious water.
For example, making basic shelves out of locally-available materials keeps cooking utensils away from dirt and animals, and building foot-operated "tippy" taps to wash hands before food preparation.
These small changes help stop the spread of disease and enable people to take responsibility for their own health.
