Today is #GivingTuesday, the annual celebration of generosity. While there are a million reasons to give today, one of these is to END the water walk for women and girls in Sub-Saharan Africa. Read on to learn how you can change a girl's future or a woman's life with as little as $20.
How does the lack of clean water in Africa affect families & children?
The lack of clean water in Africa affects every minute of the day of those living without it. Women and children are often particularly affected. Why is that? One of the reasons is that because in rural communities without water, it is often the women or the children’s job to collect water for the family. The Joint Monitoring Report by WHO/UNICEF suggests women and girls are responsible for water collection in 8 out of 10 households with water off premises. The time and energy that goes into this daily task becomes an unsurmountable obstacle for women and girls to help themselves and to break out of the cycle of poverty. Spending hours each day simply finding and transporting water means you can’t grow food, you can’t keep working, you can’t stay in school, when you’re a girl you can’t have playtime and when you’re older you simply don’t catch a break! The weight of the water container on the way back ensures you can’t stay healthy. Research in Sub-Saharan Africa shows that already malnutritioned female bodies do not respond well to the caloric expenditure required by water acquisition leading to spine deformities and early onset of arthritic diseases.
The implications are even more pressing for children, as water scarcity leaves them with a choice between dirty water and no water at all. UNICEF reports that dirty water kills more children that all forms of violence combined, including war. According to another study, dirty water kills 72,000 children each year. That’s almost 200 kids every single day. Old enough to attend kindergarten, these little ones never even make it to school. All because the water they sip after a meal or playtime preys on their bodies, robbing them of the chance to have a childhood or a future.
Here's your chance to make a difference
While water poverty is a fact of life for millions, there’s a good news! The good news is that.. it brings with it an opportunity to change lives. When you give to Project Maji, you can sustainably crush water poverty for a community, FOREVER! A crushed water crisis will have women reclaim their time, peace of mind, physical safety and lost opportunities. Girls can stay in school, complete their education and get ahead in life while moms can lay back and just be hands on present moms. All we need to do is work together towards making safe water a reality for women and girls around the world. We, at Project Maji, NGO in Dubai, are doing exactly that, and we invite you to join us this #GivingTuesday in building a water-secure lifeworld for women and girls In the world's most remote rural communities.