What is water worth?
It rained all day here in Warwickshire yesterday, but one of the top stories on the news was the hosepipe ban in the south and east of England. We take an instant supply of clean water for granted, because most of the time we have more than enough rain in the UK. How would we feel if we had to carry every drop into our homes ourselves? I for one would think twice before taking a bath!
In the Mukuru settlement in Nairobi, Kenya, residents pay more than 5 times as much for water as we do in the UK – and they don’t have the luxury of a piped supply into the home. Water has to be collected in containers from a communal tap – often some distance away. And, in times of scarcity, water prices inevitably rocket. In many rural areas of Africa, women and children walk for miles to collect water from wells.
In the UK we struggle to reduce our use of water and government water saving advice mainly covers non essential activity such as washing the car and watering the garden.
In contrast, according to this article, Kashmiri children resort to shaving their heads when water is short so that their hair doesn’t appear unkempt. I can’t see this being a popular piece of government advice here!
Practical Action has innovative ways of helping people gain access to clean water. By developing a partnership between local people and the utility company, improved access to clean water has been achieved for many thousands in the Mukuru settlement. Restricting our supply may help us to appreciate just how good (and comparatively cheap) our water is and encourage us to do a bit more to help the 1.3 billion people who lack access to safe water.
3 Comments » | Add your commentOnce upon a time…
….there was a little girl who loved stories. As a little slip of a thing, she used to stand and swing on the garden gate, waving to passers-by in the hope that she could chat to them and ask them questions to find out their stories (she was a very curious little girl). A few years later, her very patient, very wonderful mother would read her favourite Maurice Sendak stories Outside Over There and Where The Wild Things Are to her every night. When she was at school, she’d set her alarm super early so she could wake up and read Enid Blyton books before going to lessons. English was always her favourite subject, and characters such as Elizabeth Bennett, Scout Finch, Jo March and Scarlett O’Hara were as familiar to her as her oldest friends. And then she studied the art of telling a story – for it is an art – during an English Literature degree at university.
Now that little girl (who’s not so little anymore) works for Practical Action.
I am that girl. And I work at Practical Action because I want to change the world. But my passion is storytelling: both discovering a good story, and then telling it in the best possible way. But how do you change the world with a story?
Well, this week, we at Practical Action launched our next five year strategy. It is bold and ambitious and exciting – but challenging too. The targets, both in terms of fundraising and impact at scale, are high.
But that’s because there are huge problems to solve. Right now 1.3 billion people across the world don’t have clean, safe water. 1 billion people don’t have enough food to eat. 2.6 billion people don’t have adequate sanitation. And 1.6 billion people don’t have access to modern energy. Too many people live in abject poverty. It is a world of great technology injustice.
There is no question that this needs to change. So over the next five years we will work towards four universal goals:
- Sustainable access to modern energy service for all by 2030
- Systems which provide food security and livelihoods for people in rural areas
- Improved access to drinking water, sanitation and waste services for people living in towns and cities
- Reduced risk of disasters for marginalised communities
And by the end of this next strategy period, in 2017, we will have transformed the lives of 6 million people.
That is an exhilarating prospect for me.
Because 6 million people = 6 million stories to find and tell.
Each of those 6 million is not just a ‘project beneficiary’ but a living, feeling, thinking human being with their own unique life story. And those 6 million life stories are 6 million more reasons to support Practical Action, today and for the future.
I can’t wait to get started.
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Walking for water made its mark
I’ve never entertained the idea of getting a tattoo…until last year, at the age of 33, when I went to Mandera in north east Kenya during the height of the drought.
What I saw there shocked me.
People walking an average of 20 miles a day in 40°C just to go and fetch water. And this journey is one fraught with danger. Water is in such short supply that violence regularly breaks out at the few remaining wells – with many innocent women and children wounded or killed.
Most of the time, the water they get isn’t even clean. It’s water like this from a polluted, dirty, hand-dug well that’s infested with all kinds of visible things…worms, tadpoles, bugs:
Unsafe water like this kills 4,000 children every day…and it will continue. With climate change, the incidence of drought is increasing. People will continue to take desperate measures to get water – any water.
Practical Action is reducing the trek that people have to make to fetch water by rehabilitating shallow wells dug into seasonal river beds and building sand filters to purify the water further.
I spoke to Nadifa at one of the rehabilitated shallow wells who said she now only has to walk two kilometres to fetch water and feels much safer.
“The well helps my family so much. The water is good because it is fresh. I can drink it and use it for my cooking”.
This month, the UN announced that the international target to halve the number of people who do not have access to safe drinking water has been met, five years before the 2015 deadline.
Yet 783 million people still live without safe water.
Today, Thursday 22 March, is World Water Day – a day of the year when we spotlight the global safe water and sanitation issue and the collective efforts underway to get solutions to those struggling and in need.
The issue has made a permanent impression on me. So, here it is:
It’s my own way of honouring a cause that is close to my heart. Any nervousness or reasons to not get it done are easily overcome by the reminder that at the end of the day, I have clean water to drink.
What has made a permanent impression on you?
5 Comments » | Add your commentProud to be ODF
If you’re squeamish about poo, look away now! Open defecation is not something people in the developed world have to think about. But for many of the poorest people living in developing countries, open defecation is not an unusual sight – 1.1 billion people defecate in the open.
The health implications are huge. More than 2 million children die each year from diarrhoea and millions more suffer poor health as a result of poor sanitation.
Over the last three years, Practical Action has been working with communities in Nepal addressing problems to improve sanitation and health. An important part of this project has been to help communities become Open Defecation Free (ODF).
Nepal’s Sanitation Plan has a comprehensive list of points, to be met by a community, to achieve ODF status:
• Proper use of toilets with access to water;
• Hand washing with soap or cleaning agent at critical times(before eating, feeding children, cooking and serving food, after use of toilet
• Safe handling and treatment of drinking water
• Maintenance of personal hygiene (regular nail cutting, bathing, cloth washing, tooth brushing);
• Proper solid and liquid waste management (Availability of bins/pits to collect/dispose solid waste) in and out of the home;
• All households should have toilet and hand washing facilities such as soap, washing platform;
• Availability of brush or brooms or cleaning agent, etc. at the toilet;
• Covering food and water;
• Regular cleaning of rooms, yards, and household compound;
• Availability of managed animal shed and covered waste water pit
• Availability of improved cooking stove/bio‐gas and improved kitchen management;
• All public institutions should have users‐friendly clean, hygienic toilets with hand washing and proper waste management facilities;
• Social map showing toilet; and community committee message/slogan for healthy community
I recently joined a group comprising media persons and other stake holders including local government officials to Sharadanagar, an emerging Village Development Committee to see if Sharadanagar met the criteria to be declared an ODF community or not.
As soon as we reached the venue I jumped off the bus and started scouring Sharadanagar hoping to find waste. But I had never seen such a clean community. All the houses were clean, small or big, thatched or brick. Each and every house had a toilet, not just a toilet but every house had a clean kitchen with kitchen racks and clean dishwashing areas. I had no idea what it takes for a community to be declared an ODF until I saw the list which each and every visitor was keen on checking.
The list is pretty long but at the end of the tour the visitors agreed that Sharadanagar indeed meets all the criteria. I certainly agreed and I know that in no time Sharadanagar will be declared ODF. This is a huge step forward and a source of pride to the whole community.
2 Comments » | Add your commentLoos and luck
I really need the loo. I’ve been at my desk for well over three hours and so far have filled my body with two cups of tea, one cup of coffee and a fair amount of water too. But I have the misfortune of working on the very top floor of Practical Action’s head office, which means that a trip to the loo involves climbing all the way downstairs. And I’m so engrossed in my work (and also a little lazy – it is Friday, after all) that I really can’t be bothered….
I’m currently writing a proposal to fundraise for a hugely exciting new project that Practical Action is embarking on in Zimbabwe. We’re working with rural communities in the southern provinces of Gwanda and Mwenezi, endeavouring to reach out to 200,000 people to improve their access to clean water, ensure they have adequate sanitation and reduce their health risks from poor hygiene. The figure is massive. 200,000 people is over double the size of my home town!
Most of these people currently live several kilometres away from a safe water supply. The task of collecting water usually falls to women and children who will spend whole days carrying up to 80 litres of water. The journey can be dangerous – these women are vulnerable to mugging and rape; and the water they do collect often isn’t fit for human consumption anyway.
Furthermore, many families in Gwanda and Mwenezi don’t have toilets in their own homes as they can’t afford to build them. This means that people usually just relieve themselves outside in the bush. This morning I’ve read stories from women and girls who describe the complete loss of dignity and embarrassment they feel while doing this, especially when they’re menstruating.
Suddenly my reluctance to walk down a flight of stairs to go to the toilet demonstrates not only laziness, but complete ignorance of how fortunate I am. Wherever I am, it only ever takes me a few minutes to fetch a glass of clean water or go to the loo.
I am lucky. But it shouldn’t be about luck. Having clean water and being able to go the toilet without putting your safety or health at risk are basic human rights to which people everywhere are entitled, whether you live in Warwickshire or Gwanda.
Now I really must go – I’m desperate.
2 Comments » | Add your commentThat ‘eureka’ moment
On a recent holiday in Sicily I visited the tomb of Archimedes, engineer and inventor of the 3rd century BC – famous for his ‘eureka’ moment. Born in the rich and powerful city of Syracuse, he benefited from the financial support of its ruler Hiero II.
He was considered the greatest mathematician of the ancient world and was responsible for many important discoveries. The Archimedes screw is still extensively used throughout the world as a method of raising water.
His home city of Syracuse was at war with Rome and under siege for two years with the result that Archimedes was obliged to devote a great deal of his time to the design of the machinery of war. He proved remarkably good at this. But imagine what he might have achieved if his work had been devoted to inventions for human good rather than human destruction.
In our sophisticated modern world we still devote a disproportionate amount of our budgets and great scientific minds to the pursuit of war. The technologies in which we invest most in the developed world are designed either to provide us with an even greater level of comfort and ease than we already enjoy or to destroy our enemies. And we expend vast sums in the destruction of our beautiful planet. Only a small proportion of our enormous wealth is devoted to finding solutions to the basic needs of more than a billion people in the world who live in poverty.
This is a great injustice and one which Practical Action is determined to address. Providing clean, sustainable energy systems, more easily accessible water supplies and better sanitation give poor men and women the opportunity to live healthier and more rewarding lives. Surely that’s worth fighting for?
3 Comments » | Add your commentCREST awards go global with Practical Action
At the British Science Association’s festival on Tuesday we launched our brand new Global CREST Challenges as new project ideas for students taking part in the CREST award scheme.
In her introductory speech at the STEM in Education evening Katherine Mathieson , Head of Education at the British Science Association introduced Practical Action as one of their key new partners. She said our CREST awards added a new dimension to the CREST award scheme that she was confident would be popular with schools throughout the UK.
CREST awards are given to students who do in depth project work with the support of a mentor on an area they are interested in. Our resources give them ideas for projects relating to science and technology in the developing world. Project areas are divided into five themes
• Water
• Food
• Energy
• Transport
• Shelter
Projects can involve up to 70 hours of work so this is a really high level of engagement for students. To support them we are pointing them towards Practical Answers’ technical briefs, technical information provided by Practical Action to real engineers working in developing countries around the world. Representatives of other organsiations were also impressed with our new resources.
”Part of what we are about is developing partnerships between research scientists and people in developing countries. I really like the idea of work of this nature being developed at a schools level”
David Dickinson, Director SciDev.Net
Please do take a look at our awards and promote to any schools you may have links with.
Veterinary care helps pastoralists cope with drought
Pastoralist communities in Kenya’s arid lands depend on their livestock and their donkeys for income. Basic veterinary care is one of the best ways to protect their animals and pastoralist livelihoods in these areas.
This is especially vital during the drought because weakened animals are at major risk from contagious diseases. But in remote areas such as Mandera in north eastern Kenya, pastoralists are unlikely to have access to veterinary services.
That’s why Practical Action vet Dr Golicha and animal health assistant Abdi Hamid, with funding from animal welfare charity The Brooke, have been training and mentoring 110 community-based animal health workers (CBAHWs) in the area in an effort to bridge this gap.
Dr Golicha from Practical Action (right) with some of the community based animal health workers
What are CBAHWs?
CBAHWs are predominantly herders themselves from pastoral areas who live and move with their animals in search of water and pasture.
I spoke to some of them at a watering point near Mandera town where pastoralists bring their livestock to drink and load their donkeys up with water to transport back home.
CBAHW Adan Ibrahim told me that they provide animal healthcare services to members of their communities. They diagnose and treat common diseases and play a major role in disease reporting, surveillance and community mobilisation. They contact Dr Golicha and Abdi Hamid if there’s anything that comes up which they are unable to treat.
I watched the team treat donkeys for worms and give them vitamin supplements aimed at reducing opportunistic diseases and infections associated with drought.
“My donkey is vital because it carries water from this shallow well 16 kilometres back home.”
Pastoralist Adan Abdirahiman with his donkey
Pastoralist Adan Abdirahiman said many of their livestock have died and donkeys are their only hope of earning money – through collecting and selling firewood and water:
“My donkey is vital because it carries water from this shallow well 16 kilometres back home. We are grateful for the help that Practical Action and The Brooke have given us – drugs for our donkeys and animal welfare advice to ensure we’re not overloading them – this is especially important during this drought when they have to carry water over longer distances and are more likely to suffer from health problems.”
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A long walk to water
We’ve all read about how Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water. But have you ever read about how people in Mandera, north eastern Kenya, can walk a round trip of up to 100 kilometres (62 miles) to fetch water?
For someone who only has to walk a few paces to get clean running water, this is incomprehensible; especially when you consider that these people have to walk this distance in temperatures of up to 40˚C. I almost consider trying it just to see if I can make it and appreciate the suffering that these people have to endure.
But this journey is one fraught with danger. Water is in such short supply that violence regularly breaks out at the few remaining wells – with many innocent women and children wounded or killed.
Practical Action is reducing the trek that people have to make to fetch water by rehabilitating shallow wells dug into seasonal river beds.
I spoke to a woman at one of the rehabilitated shallow wells who said she now only has to walk two kilometres to fetch water and feels much safer. While I was there, I was told by several pastoralists that the trough next to the shallow well gives their livestock easy access to water and as a result, is helping to keep them alive.
Patoralist Adan Ibrahim said: “The rehabilitation of these wells and the building of new wells is crucial to the livestock because they will always have water. This will ensure that they survive the drought until the next rains come.”
It’s clear that amongst the complex solutions we’re introducing to this area, this simple technology is a life-saving answer.
This is why it’s so critical for us to dig more wells and rehabilitate more wells. 90,000 households across Mandera county depend on them.
Find out more about our shallow well work.
No Comments » | Add your commentIn Kenya where we’re improving lots of lives
I’m in Kenya visiting some of Practical Action’s projects and over the next few weeks I’ll be sharing my experiences with you through this blog.
My first stop was the Practical Action office in Nairobi where I met a number of enthusiastic staff who updated me on all the projects they’re working on and the impact that they’re having on poor communities.
Project officers Patrick Mwanzia and Lydia Muchiri work on projects to improve the access of poor women and men to basic services such as water, sanitation and energy.
They told me about an exciting project that I’m going to visit next week in the urban slums of Kisumu and Kitale. It aims to bring real improvements to around 190,000 poor people by protecting water springs, installing toilets, sanitation blocks, home composting kits and two kilometres of drainage and much, much more.
In Kibera, the team is working on the installation of a library – the first of its kind in an informal settlement (slum).
They’re busy working on three pilot micro-hydro demonstration schemes with the Ministry of Energy, which is supportive of decentralising the supply of micro–hydro in order to make such services viable and more sustainable.
Over 90% of rural households in Kenya use firewood for cooking and there’s a lot of intervention work going on across the country to prevent people from dying of smoke-related diseases from open fires. Examples include working with communities to install improved stoves and smoke hoods.
And in Nakuru they’re championing lots of work in solid waste management.
Lydia said: “We’ve been able to get these services decentralised so we’ve given people the opportunity to set up their own enterprises, introduced financing initiatives so they can borrow money and trained them on sorting and grading. It’s a fantastic example of how we’re improving the environment here and improving people’s livelihoods.”
I have many more examples in my notebook that I will share with you over the coming weeks so please stay tuned to my blog to find out more! Now out into the field to see Practical Action in action….
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