Bringing much needed clean water to Gezesso

The people of Bonke, a district in southern Ethiopia, suffer greatly due to a lack of clean water. When HOPE International Development Agency began working in Bonke in 2010, only 14% of people had access to clean water. Everyone else travelled several hours to use ponds, rivers, and unprotected springs. It is hard to underestimate what this means for the health and well-being of women, men, and children. Dirty water means sickness, wasted time, and missed school. Dirty water steals hope and makes it impossible for people to meet their full potential.

Thanks to help from people like you, in the past six years HOPE International Development Agency has provided clean water to 69,000 people in Bonke, bringing clean water access up to 53% in the district.  Our goal is to continue working with communities, village by village, to help families out of poverty and into sustainable lifestyles.  

An example of this is in Gezesso, where soon families who are in dire need of help will have a significant investment in their health and self-reliance so that they can thrive. Helping these families access clean, nearby water is a simple solution to many of their problems. With clean water piped from springs in their community to village water taps steps from their homes, the 2,383 people who live in Gezesso will have hope they never had before.

There are three springs in the community that can be capped to provide more than enough water for the daily use of women, men, and children who live there – enough even for the community as it grows in the future. Once these springs are capped and the water is piped almost 6.5 km to people’s doorsteps, life in the community will change dramatically. In addition to infrastructure, HOPE International Development Agency will work with families to teach them simple steps that can keep them healthier, such as washing their hands, using shelving in their homes, and digging latrines. A local water management committee will be formed to ensure that the community has the tools and knowledge needed to care for their water well into the future. Caretakers and community health educators will be trained and given responsibility to work with others in their village to keep the water points and surroundings clean. Women will have the opportunity to gather together into groups with their neighbors and friends to learn new skills and support each other.

We are presently finalising the plans for this project to commence.  Our partner organisation in Canada has also been working to fundraise to cover the costs so that materials might be purchased.  Thank you for the contribution you have already made.  Collectively we are all working to bring positive, fundamental change to this needy, rural region of Ethiopia.