Mothers' pride

Adisa Mohammed collects water in Ghana. Two of her four children died before their third birthdays.

Credit: WaterAid / Jon Spaull

Mothering Sunday is a day to thank mums for the great, tireless work they do. But for millions of mothers across the world the lack of safe water makes the job of bringing up children harder than we can ever imagine, writes Mary Trafford.

Imagine walking miles every day in the hot sun to collect water even when you are heavily pregnant. Imagine knowing that the first sip of water your baby takes might make them ill. Imagine not having a choice.

For Adisa Mohammed who lives in the city of Tamale in Ghana, unsafe water has brought tragedy to the joy of motherhood. Two of her four children died before their third birthdays. Now she is pregnant again and still must walk four kilometres every day to collect water from her nearest source.

She says, "I will come here every day until I deliver. Even though the water isn't good, we have no choice."

This Mothering Sunday falls on 22 March, United Nations World Water Day, a fitting coincidence because for many mothers in the developing world access to safe water would be the most precious gift.

Having safe water close to home not only improves health. It also frees women from hours of water collection and gives them more time to earn money to make a better life for their family.

Mrs Gamma lives near Lifuwu village in Malawi. Before WaterAid enabled her community to build a well, water related diseases were rife, stifling productivity in the community. She says, "We spent so much time taking our children to hospital when we really just wanted to work in the fields to get a good harvest. Now we have clean water there is so much time in our lives. I can feel that the children are learning from our empowerment and they're going to do better than we have."

Why not celebrate Mothering Sunday and UN World Water Day this year by giving your mother a gift that will make a real difference? You could treat her to a meal in a restaurant that supports WaterAid through the Tap into WaterAid initiative or surprise her with a tap or toolkit from our SH2OP for Life. Your gift will help mothers and children around the world gain access to life's most basic needs: clean water and effective sanitation.

Mary Trafford is WaterAid's Communications Services Officer – Fundraising.

Get involved this UN World Water Day	Buy a tap
Restaurants, cafes or bars can support WaterAid by asking customers to make a donation when they order tap water. Encourage your local to get involved this World Water Day! Call 0845 6000 433 for an information pack or visit www.tapintowateraid.org	When you buy a tapstand in WaterAid's SH2OP for life the money you spend supports our life-changing water projects. Celebrate safe water on Mothering Sunday with a WaterAid tapstand! Visit our SH2OP for life