Water is all

Many of you will have received our appeal in June which focused on Segueda Zouga, who spends nine hours every day collecting water. Now, thanks to your support, life is set to change in her village of Bougdgin in Burkina Faso.

By the end of this year Segueda will no longer have to spend nine hours a day collecting unsafe water.

Credit: WaterAid / Mike Wade

Burkina Faso in West Africa is one of the poorest countries in the world. One in five children die before their fifth birthday. There are few schools, health facilities and public services - especially in rural areas. Only 51% of the population have access to clean water and fewer still - only 12% - have access to sanitation.

Segueda lives in a mud walled compound in Bougdgin with around 35 people. Their time is consumed by collecting water from a dirty, muddy hole. Segueda knows that this water can make her children ill. "My only choice is to give them water which is not safe to drink or no water at all," she explains. "I worry about the water I give them constantly. All of us get ill often. My children and I get fevers, stomach cramps, and diarrhoea. Many people in the village die."

The long daily trek means that she has no time to earn an income or look after her children. Segueda constantly worries about the lack of water. She says, "My first, second and third problems are water. We need better health care, a maternity clinic and education for our children but water is our biggest problem of all. It is at the root of all our troubles. Without water my whole life is one of hardship. I have no pleasure, no time of day that I enjoy. Water is all."

But thanks to your generous support we are able to help her and her village. We are currently working with our local partner and Segueda's community planning the new water project and access to safe, clean water will be available by the end of the year.

Alongside this, hygiene education work will begin in the community very soon so that they gain the maximum health benefits from the water supply. This will mean an end to Segueda's nine hour trek to collect dirty water and a chance for her and the other villagers to break out of the cycle of illness, poverty and despair. There will be more time to earn an income and for children to go to school, and a chance to look forward to a brighter future.

Thank you once again for your generous support.

By Emma Roper, Direct Marketing Officer.