Bringing clean water to 13,000 people in Vietnam

The completed rural clean water system in Sao Phong, Cao Trach and Ma Thuong Hamlets, Phong Hoa Commune, Tuyen Hoa District has improved community health and decreased the number of water-borne diseases in the project area.

Thank you very much to all the wonderful people who contributed to the fund for our clean water project in Central Vietnam. Through your assistance, we have been able to provide poor rural households with clean water with which to drink, wash, and bathe.

While the majority of our project in Sao Phong, Cao Trach, and Ma Thuong was completed in May 2008, our clean water projects are ongoing. We finished the biggest part of the project - the central water tower for the three villages and connected the central water system to the initial houses that were signed onto the project. We also trained the first set of water managers.

As part of our water projects, community members were asked to pay for the small price of piping to connect to the water system East Meets West built as well as participate with the rest of the community in a day's worth of labor to dig the trenches and lay the pipe. Therefore, they feel invested in the long-term sustainability of the system.

However there were still households in the three villages that wanted to be connected and for the last few months we offered funds to the poorest of the poor who are not able to pay for the pipes to connect them to the system. We have used the funds from GlobalGiving to help some of the remaining households in the community connect.

As a result of the completed water system, the residents now have access to potable water and the water source will be sufficient for their daily consumption in the dry season. They no longer have to use contaminated water and primitive filtration methods, nor do they have to travel long distances to collect water. Time will be saved which the children can use to study and play and adults can work and spend more time with family. One school and one commune health clinic will also benefit from the system.

You were a part of this and we thank you for your compassion and your efforts!

If you are interested in contributing to another EMW project, please search for our organization and check out the other ways we are working to empower poor and disadvantaged communities in Southeast Asia.