Clean water in Ghana

Join us in providing borehole systems, water reservoirs, handwashing stations and hygiene education for three Compassion centres in rural Ghana. Access to safe water is crucial in keeping children healthy, strong and in school!

Mother and child fetch water behind their home. Betty, a girl wearing an orange and white dress, bends over to fetch water with a plastic container beside her mother as they are getting water in plastic buckets and containers. Evelyn, who is wearing a yellow scarf, turban, head wrap on her head, a red shirt and long pattern skirt, together at a large mud puddle of collected rain water on the ground, with the mother using a green cup in her hands to retrieve the water to pour into the containers. This appears to be an unsanitary water source, potentially unhealthy, unsafe, and not clean drinking water in a large puddle on the ground. They are surrounded by green trees and grass.

In Enyan Denkyira, Ghana, water is scarce. For Rejoice, a mom in this community, keeping her kids healthy has always been an uphill battle. Bottled water was too expensive to buy, but the local taps were unmaintained and spat out rusty water-when they gave water at all. The nearest well, several kilometres away, was contaminated with debris. The only other option was a nearby stream, teeming with bacteria and parasites. Waterborne diseases like diarrhea, bilharzia (worms) and intestinal parasites were the most common health issues here. The Compassion centre’s first health screening showed that nearly one in five children were suffering from a water-borne illness. But when Compassion equipped the local church with a new borehole and water storage tanks, registered children were sick less often-and missed fewer days of school. Parents like Rejoice were able to put the money they normally spent on bottled water or medical care toward providing for their families. And the last three health screenings at the Compassion centre revealed no new cases of waterborne illnesses!

A boy is washing his hands with clean water. The suds rinse and drain into a blue tub.

Having access to safe water is crucial to keeping kids healthy and strong. Diarrhea, often from a lack of sanitation and safe water, is the second leading cause of death in children under five-and in Ghana, the number of children who don’t make it to their fifth birthday is more than 12 times higher than in Canada. But progress is possible! Thanks to worldwide interventions over the past 25 years:

91% of the world’s population can now access improved sources of drinking water.

2.1 billion people gained access to improved sanitation facilities.

And thanks, in part, to this progress, the number of children dying each day is half of what it was 25 years ago! This is great news! However, many rural communities still lag behind. Let’s bridge the gap to bring safe water and sanitation to three of Compassion’s church partners in Ghana.

Donating to this fund will help provide communities in Ghana with:

Safe Water

This initiative will bring safe water to three communities in rural Ghana through a borehole system. Each centre will also receive three 10,000 litre storage tanks to safely store water.

Sanitation

Only 8.6% of Ghana’s rural population has access to proper sanitation. Without it, there won’t be an end to preventable diseases. Each centre will receive four handwashing stations for children and staff to use during centre activities.

Education

The key to any successful intervention is education. This initiative will also train caregivers in the importance of hygiene and how to implement those practices at home, as well as safe water storage and treatment.

Thirteen-year-old Eric Njuki, a young teen boy, wearing an orange shirt and khaki shorts, at home, with his mother, Rose Nduta, adult female wearing a white shirt and skirt, are standing with a Compassion-provided water tank to harvest rain water, large black water reservoir, container. A walled mud home and greenery is in the background.

STORY

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