Left out of government plan, Cross River village fights to end open defecation

Community members, in collaboration with the non-profit Save the Children and the United States Agency for International Development, installed a solar-powered borehole earlier this year, making clean water more accessible to the village. Community members regularly clean the water taps and perform system maintenance to ensure the water supply isn’t disrupted, as the solar-powered solution has become their primary source of clean water.

In a village facing water scarcity, generous locals with funds to spare are installing boreholes in their homes with pumps outside for other residents in the village to access clean, safe water.

Members of a water-insecure community mobilized to contribute a portion of their monthly stipends to repair and maintain the singular borehole providing water to the village. The community members — primarily women — also installed water taps throughout the community in locations like schools and mosques to ensure easy access to clean, safe drinking water.

The Cherokee Nation is addressing long-standing water insecurity and infrastructure challenges through proactive investments triggered by the passage of the Wilma P. Mankiller & Charlie Soap Water Act. By shifting from emergency fixes to long-term planning, the tribe has funded targeted infrastructure upgrades, leveraged state and federal partnerships, and used precise data assessments to pinpoint urgent community needs.

Amidst water scarcity and increased waterborne diseases, community members are using sand dams, an innovative water management system, to conserve rainwater for daily use. Sand dams offer extended water storage capabilities, lasting up to a year, ensuring community members have consistent access to clean water for farming, cooking and general hygiene. There are currently six sand dams in the community serving 600 households.

The city of Bangalore is combining traditional well-building practices with modern wastewater treatment technology to address the local water crisis. By getting the community involved, they’ve bolstered forgotten wells, integrated advanced filtration systems and made significant progress towards a more sustainable future. One community alone has revitalized 200,000 manholes over the course of eight years.

The Network of Water Rights Initiative (NWRI) works with local organizations to improve access to safe water through education and awareness campaigns aimed at enlightening people about the health risks of contaminated water. NWRI has led water clean-up efforts, helped locals establish security measures to prevent people from dumping waste in water and even helped get a water bill signed into law that would improve water supply and sanitation services across the state.

The I-WASH program aims to combat waterborne diseases and address challenges facing communities without access to clean water. The program has built toilets in schools, provided handwashing facilities, as well as a solar-powered borehole and educational services on sanitation practices and how to maintain the water points. Through the help of the I-WASH program, as of May 2022, 300 functional toilets had been built in households across more than 30 communities.

The Water Access Rwanda project created a source of clean drinking water by establishing a network of pipelines and solar-powered pumps that help deliver purified drinking water to homes. Not only has the project provided a way for people to access clean water, but it has also provided jobs for over 60 people.

The Conditional Cash Transfer program provides a monthly stipend to low-income individuals. The program was implemented in six local government areas and benefits over 48,000 people. Thanks to the funds from the program, several local women were able to pool their stipends together to repair their area’s only borehole to ensure locals have access to clean water.