Water

One in eight people in the world do not have access to safe water. Many women and children in rural areas in developing countries spend hours each day walking miles to collect water from unprotected sources such as open wells, muddy dugouts or streams.

In urban areas they collect it from polluted waterways or pay high prices to buy it from vendors who obtain it from dubious sources. The water is often dirty and unsafe, but they have no alternative.

A woman collecting water from a marsh in Mozambique. Credit: WaterAid / Jon Spaull

Carrying the heavy water containers back home is an exhausting task, which takes up valuable time and energy. It often prevents women from doing vital domestic or income generating work and stops children from going to school.

Diarrheal diseases caused by unsafe water and poor sanitation, such as cholera, typhoid and dysentery, are common across the developing world - killing 5,000 children every day.

People suffering from these diseases or caring for children who are ill from them are often unable to work to earn money, yet face large medical bills.

There is an urgent need for action, but all too often water and sanitation are overlooked in global development agenda, despite being consistently cited as top priorities by communities themselves.

Total global investments in water and sanitation would need to double for the Millennium Development Goal targets of halving the proportions of people living without water and sanitation by 2015 to be met.

WaterAid addresses global water and sanitation problems by:

• Undertaking projects to enable communities to set up and manage water and sanitation systems in 17 countries in Africa, Asia and the Pacific region
• Campaigning for others, such as governments, to adopt a more integrated approach to development that recognizes how water and sanitation are vital in poverty reduction

Our projects

Our water projects help communities to gain access to uncontaminated water sources.

In rural areas the most common technologies we use are hand-dug wells, tubewells or boreholes that reach groundwater resources. Where possible we rehabilitate existing wells that have fallen into disrepair, as it is more cost effective than the construction of new wells. The wells are hygienically sealed and fitted with appropriate pumps that the communities are trained to maintain and service themselves, with help from engineers available for serious problems.

Where groundwater is inaccessible or in short supply, rainwater harvesting can be a viable alternative or supplementary source. Rainwater is generally collected from roofs, from where it is filtered and stored in tanks. In mountainous areas, springs can be protected and gravity flow systems are used to pipe water downhill to a network of storage tanks and tapstands.

In urban areas where there are existing piped water supplies, WaterAid and our partner organizations often help communities to negotiate with the local government or water suppliers to extend the network into their areas and construct communal tapstands that can be managed by the communities themselves.

Our projects' impact

Once communities have access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene education, they can escape the water and sanitation poverty trap. Freed up from hours of water collection and the misery of water-related disease, communities are better able to channel their time and energy into more productive activities and simple enjoyment of life.

Women have more time to work to earn money, grow food and cook and care for their children, which boosts households' income, nutrition and health. Children have more time to help with domestic tasks or dedicate to their schooling, which improves their long-term prospects

The stress on household finances is reduced by the reduced need for medical care for water-related diseases. Families also report lower stress levels, increased status and self-esteem and increased ability to observe religious rites and customs.

Influencing others

Due to the scale of the problem WaterAid recognizes that it cannot meet the global water and sanitation needs simply through implementing water and sanitation projects itself.

WaterAid also uses its experience, research and good practice to influence other organizations on adopting policies and practices that will enable the poor to gain sustainable access to safe water and sanitation.

A highly professional and integrated approach has given WaterAid an authoritative voice in the water sector. We use this voice to support campaigns, build networks and develop alliances with other international bodies dedicated to the interests of poor people. Through this work WaterAid is enabling citizens to hold their governments to account and make their demands for affordable and equitable water and sanitation services better heard and prioritized.

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