WATER WELLS FOR AFRICA
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Mission Statement
Water Wells For Africa (WWFA) fights a silent killer destroying lives around the globe, as nearly 1 billion people suffer each day because they lack safe drinking water. Water. Such a foundational human need that in 2010 the United Nations General Assembly pronounced clean water "essential to the full enjoyment of life and all other human rights" and the UN Human Rights Council declared that the human right to water is part of the right to an adequate standard of living. Clean, safe water is taken for granted in much of the world...while for about 1 in 10 people on our planet water is both scarce and (when they can find it) a health risk. The lack of access to such a fundamental life requirement has devastating results: often painful disease and even death, especially for children under the age of five. By conducting projects that provide clean water and hygiene training, Water Wells for Africa (WWFA) saves tens of thousands more lives each year.
About This Cause
The African continent faces greater water challenges than any other part of the world, with roughly one of three (330 million) people on the continent not having access to a clean water source. Of these, eighty-four percent live in rural areas where this crisis is most prevalent. According to the United Nations (UN), dirty water kills more people on the globe than wars and other manmade violence. Unfortunately, aid commitments for solutions targeting rural populations are declining—even while aid for urban solutions have increased 60% since 2000. As a result, on any given day more than 50% of hospital beds in Sub-Saharan Africa are filled with people with water/hygiene-related illnesses. [Drinking Water Equity, Safety, and Sustainability: Thematic report on drinking water 2011]. We offer a few facts from the Center for Disease Control (CDC): • More than 800,000 children under 5 years old die from diarrhea each year in developing countries; that is nearly 2,200 every day! This amounts to 11% of the 7.6 million deaths of children under the age of five, and means that about 2,200 children die every day as a result of diarrheal diseases. • Unsafe drinking water, inadequate availability of water for hygiene, and lack of access to sanitation together contribute to about 88% of all deaths from diarrheal diseases. • Worldwide, millions of people are infected with neglected tropical diseases, many of which are water and/or hygiene-related, such as Buruli Ulcer, Trachoma, and Schistosomiasis, and more. These diseases are most often found in places with unsafe drinking water, poor sanitation, and insufficient hygiene practices (often dependent on water). In rural settings, it is traditionally women and young girls who bear the responsibility of obtaining their family’s water supply. In Sub-Saharan Africa, more than 2/3 of rural populations spend over an hour per trip of water collection. That means valuable time, often upwards of 3 hours each day, is lost collecting minimal amounts of contaminated water. In addition to the health risks facing families and entire communities, women’s opportunities for education and work are frequently inhibited by this strenuous and time-consuming work. The situation is dire. People are quite literally dying as you read this, but there is a remedy: clean, safe, accessible water. Water Wells for Africa is making it happen. WWFA provides sanitation and hygiene training before each water well is complete. The combination of water and education results in a profoundly positive impact for the communities we work with. Waterborne diseases quickly become a thing of the past within several miles of where we install wells and provide training. WWFA is committed to maintaining our holistic, integrated approach. While the health benefits of what we do are obviously huge, there are also significant economic and social benefits for communities receiving a well. Our current success began back in September of 1994, when the Founder of WWFA, Kurt Dahlin, was traveling around arid Southern Malawi. At the time, Malawi was ranked one of the poorest countries in Africa. As he met community leaders and indigenous village elders in various regions, he observed a common thread—a universal problem facing most of the families and villages he met. Kurt was struck by the painful daily struggle of the people he met, as they sought to get safe drinking water for themselves and their families. Young girls were walking several hours a day to collect diseased water, carrying 40-pound buckets home on their heads. His heart broke, and he felt compelled to bring the “treasure” of water to these thirsty people. This experience shaped Kurt’s future. In May 1996, the (unincorporated) “Water Wells for Africa Project” drilled its first borehole and installed its first well in the Mchiwa/Mulanje district of Malawi thanks to donations from actors Charlie Sheen and Carey Elwes, and Hollywood stuntman Eddie Braun. The results were phenomenal! Seeing the transformation created for this village through the installation of a simple well was an exhilarating accomplishment for everyone involved. As the project gained momentum, priority was given to the poorest communities and to the most remote, vulnerable regions of Southern Malawi. Basing its efforts in Manhattan Beach, California, the WWFA Project continued to grow. By the end of 2000, the project had brought clean water to 26,000 people. In the next six years, that number increased 500%. By 2006, we were thrilled to have gifted 76 wells, offering disease-free water in rural villages throughout Malawi. After a decade of first-hand (and hands-on!) experience with the daily struggle for water—and the drastic improvement made by water wells—Kurt wanted to do even more. WWFA was incorporated in California in February 2007, and earned official designation by the Internal Revenue Service as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, effective on the same date. We remain as focused and determined as ever! As of early 2017, with the investment of our dedicated donors and the commitment of the communities we serve: WWFA has erected 173 water wells estimated to be serving clean, SAFE water to more than 200,000 people each day! Our wells are engineered to last at least 20 years, and this has proven true through our inspections to multiple long-term sites. They last this long because one of the only requirements WWFA has for our recipient communities is the formation of a Maintenance Committee; a team of local who are trained in maintenance and repair of the pumping unit. According to our well inspection surveys, 97% of WWFA wells remain in operation—a number we are very proud of. In fact: In May 2016, WWFA celebrated the twentieth anniversary of the installation of our first well, which we are thrilled to report is still operating! Now in our 21st year of operation, WWFA is one of the original water projects operating in Africa. Our mission, values, and work, as well as our emphasis on maintenance training and the empowerment of truly local community leadership, will keep each of our life-changing wells operating for a generation.