The water we want - Salinity cripples life

In continuation of its advocacy for promotion and expansion of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs for about seven years, MRDI is planning to install three small desalination plants at Koilashganj, Bonlaudob and Dhangmari of Sundarbans, world's largest mangrove forest, to supply safe water to the suffering families and save their lives with the fund "The water we want".

We appreciate our valuable donor’s cooperation in building desalination plants. We want your cooperation in future too so that we can secure safe drinking water for the people of those three villages of Sundarbans.

Why we need the support?

Scarcity of safe water is a severe crisis for people living in the Sundarbans. It is estimated that around five million people of coastal region badly suffer due to ground water salinity and lack of safe drinking water. It is explored in a research by MRDI, a nonprofit organization, that the threat posed by extreme ground water salinity in the target area of Dakope, one of the most vulnerable and remote Upazila of Khulna, Bonlaudob, Dhangmari and Koilashgonj, located adjacent to each other are very much high.

Usage of saline and germinated water causes serious health hazard to the people, particularly women and children. They frequently suffer from skin diseases, diarrhea, dysentery, jaundice and others. To add to the suffering, the number of ponds and safe drinking water sources are scarce. Fetching safe drinking water is difficult as the ponds and other sources are far away from the villages. To bring safe drinking water from far off ponds and other sources the women have to walk two hours a day on average, that is almost impossible for the women. By considering the sufferings of those people of the villages especially women and children MRDI has taken this initiative.

Challenge

There are around 1200 households in three villages with a population of approximately 6000. According to budget estimation, installing three small desalination plants in three villages will cost $191,297. But the fund received compared to the required budget is just a drop in the ocean. We have received very little fund from our valuable donors which is not sufficient enough to execute our project aimed to secure safe drinking water for the vulnerable women of the Sundarbans.