6 months access to clean drinking water for a child in Uganda

Clean water for a clear future Clean water for a clear future

Creating a foundation for education, health and income

Henry is 8 years old. His role model is Messi. He has never seen him play, but the other children in the community are always talking about him. Whenever Henry goes to fetch water with his mother, he kicks anything that could be a ball. He kicks stones and bushes - he imagines what it would be like to be able to play real football one day. On the way back he carries two heavy five-litre canisters - so kicking is not as easy as on the way there. What can they do with the water today? Maybe he can wash himself or his mother can use it to cook something? He doesn't have much time today, because it took more than four hours to fetch water. Henry wishes there was a safe water source nearby, then he wouldn't have to walk so far to fetch water and could go to school instead. Then he would play football with the others during recess. And one day he would be as good as Messi.

Nicola Winter presents her favorite project

need

Access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene training for children and their families in Uganda

activity

Wells, tanks and latrines are being built at schools in the Kibaale District in Uganda and students are being trained in hygiene and water management

Measurable performance

Number of children who have access to clean water and learn safe water and hygiene practices

Result

More students are supplied with fresh water in their everyday lives; hygiene-related illnesses and the associated absences from school are declining sharply

Systemically relevant impact

Water is available in sufficient quantities and ensures long-term improvements in health, more school graduations and a better economic situation for the communities

background

Water is the basis for health and development. Access to safe water and education on hygiene reduce the risk of disease and create opportunities for education and healthy and adequate nutrition. Children and their families gain time because they no longer have to carry water for hours. In addition, the need for expensive medication for hygiene-related diseases is no longer there. This allows families to use their resources more specifically for their economic advancement. Uganda has a very young population: the average age is just 15 years (CIA, 2023). Since it is usually the job of children and women to fetch water for the family, many children cannot use this valuable time for school work. In addition, a multitude of dangers lurk on the long journeys to the mostly contaminated water holes. In addition, girls often have to stay at home on their periods because there are no suitable washing facilities and sanitary facilities at school. Only one in three schools in the country offers the opportunity to wash hands or use sanitary facilities (UNICEF, 2020). Without access to safe drinking water, clean water for food preparation and washing, the risk of infectious diseases such as typhoid and various diarrheal diseases also increases. Every day, 1,000 children worldwide die as a result of contaminated water and unsanitary living conditions (UNICEF, 2023).

The good deed

With your good deed today, you are giving children in western Uganda access to clean and safe water. Your donation will be used to build a water supply with tanks, wells, and sanitary facilities for schools in rural communities in the Kibaale District. At the same time, students will be trained on hygiene and the safe use of water. The communities around the schools will also be allowed to use the safe access to water. Water experts will be trained among community members to look after the facilities in the long term. This good deed will ensure a sustainable water supply and reduce the risk of water- and hygiene-related diseases in the entire catchment area of the schools. The school's water supply enables the children to concentrate on their education. In addition to improving the health situation, the surrounding communities will also be able to experience economic growth. Water means health, income, and education. Water is life.

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